


Tales of the Society: The Azure Age Chapter 8

by LadyofI



Series: Tales of the Society [8]
Category: Original Work
Genre: F/M, Gen, The Ship Will Sail!
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-01
Updated: 2019-07-31
Packaged: 2020-07-28 08:00:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 23,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20060659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LadyofI/pseuds/LadyofI
Summary: Saturn snaps and begins to attack Neo-Tokyo in an attempt to save the "love of her life", Tsuneo.





	1. Split Decision

**Author's Note:**

> Ah, Saturn, the fangirling human wasp nest. How much trouble you caused. At least you led to Irene and Tsuneo getting together, _finally_.

_The room was silent for a time as the Society recalled the sudden diversion to their plans against the Azure Initiative. “I _still_ can’t believe our rotten luck,” Matt sighed. “JUST as we get everything in place to _finally_ take the offensive against Weiss and Co., Saturn decides to start stirring up trouble…what’re the odds, bro?”_

_“_Better than you think, Matt,_” Zeus growled. “_After all, Brian had to be a **blind fucking idiot** and do the one thing I TOLD him not to do…**AGAIN.**_”_

_“Uhh...what’s he on about, Brian?” JoJo asked._

_“Weeell, to be honest with you all…” Brian rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “I…_maaay_ have mentally invoked ‘the Accursed Sentence’ the night before Saturn’s attack on Neo-Tokyo…”_

_Several groans and facepalms came in response to the Sergeant’s admission. “Maudlin of the Well, Brian, why you gotta fucking DO THIS to us?!” Tavo cried. “Do you even KNOW how much black metal it took to get the buzzing of those fucking wasps outta my head?”_

_“As much as I would _love_ to tear Brian a new asshole over saying _that sentence_ before Saturn attacked, I doubt he’s _entirely_ to blame.” Even as Irene spoke, she shot a withering glare at the bunny-spider with the eyes appearing on her wings. “With Purgatory setting up her ‘Cathedral’ to put an end to us in general and Tsuneo in particular, it was only a matter of time before Saturn snapped.”_

_“And when she did…boy, did she _ever._” Tsuneo chuckled mirthlessly as the memories resurfaced. “All of Neo-Tokyo went up in a cloud of wasps in the blink of an eye, and she gave us a pretty decent runaround. Her biggest mistake was how she handled me, but we’ll get to that when it matters. For now…let’s focus on the positives of that diversion: namely, the fact that Brian _finally_ took my advice about improving our group’s transport~”_

_As everyone leaned in, Tsuneo turned to give Brian a trollish smirk behind his mask, receiving an exaggerated eye-rolling in response before the hybrid took his cue. “Well…let’s not get ahead of ourselves, Tsuneo. If I recall correctly, we had to get you up to speed first…”  
_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

## Tales of the Society - The Azure Age

### Chapter 8.1: Split Decision

Between the two of them, Brian and Eli had probably broken the record for “fastest info dump on the Nexus”. They had taken turns giving Tsuneo a lightning-quick summary on what had transpired during his half-week of downtime, talking at speeds that left the other Society members dizzy and confused. Nevertheless, Tsuneo seemed to understand them well enough; a perk of knowing them for such a long time.

“Right…so let me see if I heard all that straight,” he said at last. “You guys built an _actually defensible_ base on this island, taking the time to make it nigh-unassailable even when just _finding it_ is gonna be hell in and of itself; I commend you on that one. In the meantime, you added some new members to the group - including Amethyst’s kid brother who wants to save her stupid ass from Weiss…” He glanced at Gabe, who only shrugged in a “can’t argue with that” fashion. “…and interrogated a shady feline operative codenamed ‘Cipher’ about a superweapon that _Purgatory_, of all people, is building; he knows how to get there, and he’s willing to help us destroy it in exchange for a ‘favor’ down the line. And just when you had everything in place to launch that attack, Saturn decided to make her move on Neo-Tokyo, probably without Weiss’s approval.” He paused for a breath, more out of theatrics than necessity. “Do I have that all right?”

Brian and Eli nodded in unison, prompting Tsuneo to bring a hand to his mask. “_Great._ Business as usual; dealing with these guys even before they left us.” With his requisite snark delivered, he walked up to the war table, flicking a switch to display a hologram of the _Ruby Revenant_.

“Whoa…how’d he know about that?” Matt whispered. “We didn’t even tell him where the projector was…”

“Tsuneo’s familiar with some _seriously_ advanced tech, and his observational skills are second to none,” Max whispered back. “This sort of thing is peanuts to him.”

“So, we have to take out Saturn before we can focus on Purgatory…first question is how to reach her.” Tsuneo stared up at the projection as he spoke. “Warping is out, so the _RR’s_ a good start…but it’s still too slow for its size. Aside from the mass being a dead giveaway, it’d take a lot more thrust to even get there in a reasonable time.”

“Alright, smartass, what do _you_ suggest?” Brian asked indignantly. “I don’t need to take the hint about our beloved airship being-” He froze when Tsuneo whipped around with an imperceptible smirk under that mask.

“Size is the limiting factor here,” he said. “Why not split the _RR_ into smaller ships, _Voltron_-style? I mean, you drew a whole car; why not edit a bigass ship so it can turn into a bunch of more manageable-sized vehicles? The smaller ships would be harder to detect, Saturn has more targets to worry about if she _does_ see us, and the lower mass would mean we’d get around even faster, right?”

Brian processed Tsuneo’s words in stunned silence for several seconds before slapping his forehead. “I swear, with the way you think…sometimes I wonder if _you’d_ use this pencil better than I can.” He chuckled to himself as he rose from his chair. “Alright, I’ll see what I can do about that.”

“Hey, wait for me!” Gabe called. “I want to see how this works!” He quickly followed Brian out the door as they headed for the Hangar; everyone else remained in the War Room, staring at Tsuneo. A few greetings and expressions of relief were exchanged, but most had the same burning question on their minds, especially Irene.

“Before we even _consider_ dragging you back into the battlefield, you owe us an explanation.” As she spoke, she couldn’t help but feel like Tsuneo _knew_ what she was going to ask him. “What even _happened_ there, before you went dark on us for three days?”

The zombie was silent for a moment that stretched on impossibly. “Something I honestly didn’t think existed,” he said at last. “Back on my home world, there were stories about the **Shadow Fiend**; a being said to be “darkness incarnate”. It supposedly hunts those with a violent spirit, possessing their bodies and eating away at their minds until they’re mere puppets of its will. I _wish_ I could say it was just a myth, but…” He cast his gaze downwards. “…it felt like I had that dark hand around my heart for a while now; it wasn’t until that fight with Clusterfuck that it was able to get out.”

“Damn...” Eli and Scafe both answered in unison. A shade of blue tinged Irene’s wings as Tsuneo raised his gaze to focus directly on her.

“I owe it to Irene for helping me overcome the Fiend so quickly,” he continued. “I’d probably have wrestled it back _eventually_ by myself, but chances are…I’d have probably killed at least one of you before then, if what I remembered about Irene’s injury was accurate.”

Irene winced at the reminder of the pain, even though it had stopped days ago. “But…hey, you’ve got control of it now…right?” She spoke with a note of hapless optimism, knowing full well it’d be too good to be true; sure enough, Tsuneo slowly shook his head.

“For now…but another incident like that could let it right back out. I’ll need to be more careful not to overdo it again; now that it’s had a taste of freedom, it’ll jump on the barest slip of my control… However…” A hint of regret crept into the revenant’s tone. “I can’t deny its effectiveness; if I hadn’t let the Fiend loose, Clusterfuck would’ve annihilated us.” He hesitated a moment before looking among the group, like he _knew_ they wouldn’t want to hear this.

“I…I don’t _want_ to use that ace again…but I may _need_ to keep it up my sleeve if the rest of the Initiative is going to be a problem…” He took another superfluous breath before speaking in his sternest tone. “If I _do_ play that card again, you all need to _get the hell away from me._ The absolute _last_ thing I want is to have my friends die at my hands. Even - and **especially** \- if it isn’t me in there anymore.”

Most of the Society looked on with concern and apprehension - several even seemed ready to object to those orders - but JoJo seemed to be regarding Tsuneo with new interest. The undead warrior frowned behind his mask as he tried to gauge the wolf’s expression; something between curiosity, recognition, and…_understanding?_

“_Hell_ no.” Irene’s firm statement drew Tsuneo’s attention away from JoJo for the moment. “I already brought you out of this once, and I’m ready to do it again if I have to. I’m even able to save myself from whatever you’re gonna do to me in the process, so I’m not scared anymore. You’ve helped me out so much; what kind of friend would I be to let you suffer like that?”

Irene’s assertion was echoed by the rest of the Society, leaving Tsuneo both moved and exasperated. “I’m gonna be the death of you idiots… Fine. If the Fiend takes control of my body, you may attempt to disable me at your _extreme_ peril. **But!**” His finger was like a rapier as he raised it to halt any premature resolutions. “Do _not_ attempt to talk me down. I’m only going to trust the Council and Irene to do the necessary work to bring me to my senses, if it comes to that… Is that clear?” He scanned the room, finding only determined assent.

“Good. Now then, let’s go to Neo-Tokyo!”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Wooow, Brian!” Emily whistled as she and the rest of the Society regarded the newly-modified _Ruby Revenant_ sitting in the hangar. “It looks so…blocky! …Are you _sure_ this is an improvement?”

“Now now, Emily, don’t judge a book by its cover.” Athena’s comment earned a brief chuckle from Hanna. “I’m sure that Brian’s made all the necessary adjustments.”

“You got that right, Athena!” Brian grinned ear to ear as he flicked a switch on the side of the hangar, causing the roof to slide open above the airship. “The new and improved _Ruby Revenant_ has all the mods we need to slip in under Saturn’s radar…”

“And it finally looks like something _functional_,” Tsuneo added, mentally cringing at the sleek but grossly inefficient design of the old airship. In contrast, the new _Ruby Revenant_ sacrificed some aesthetic appeal for much more internal space and a visible suite of firepower; a pair of large frontal turret assemblies near the bridge and lower deck, and several ports for more surprises.

Brian’s scowl at Tsuneo’s final jab lasted only for a second as he refocused on the new model. “AAAAND thanks to the newly-installed autopilot function, I can show ‘em off right now! Hit it, Gabe~!”

“R-right away!” The goat-boy produced a sketchy-looking remote and pushed the large purple button marked “Auto-Demonstration,” causing the _Ruby Revenant_ to rumble to life. The Society watched with interest as the airship rose into the air and flew off; according to a monitor on the side of the hangar, it was doing a full lap of the island.

“_Looks like the autopilot function works like a charm,_” Zeus commented. “_Let’s show ‘em the main attraction, kid - engage the multi-vector assault mode!_”

“Gotcha!” Gabe flipped the remote around and flicked a switch marked “M-VAM”, causing the feed to disappear into static - but only for a moment. When the screen came back, it was split between five separate viewpoints, each covering a different path across the island before converging on the Society HQ.

“Llladies and gentlemen!” Brian spread out his arms theatrically as the roar of engines filled the hangar. Presenting, for the very first time…the **_Ruby Revenant_: Shard Mode!**

The Society could only watch in awe as each of the smaller crafts came in one by one. First came the lowest part of the airship, a broad skiff armed with the frontmost turret and a pair of machine guns. Coming in behind it was a wider carrier craft, quite heavily armored and rigged with a pair of rocket pods. This one was flanked by two small vehicles formed from the thruster pods, each sporting a pair of miniguns clipped onto each side. These crafts all floated together as they came closer, making way for the last and largest of them to sail into place above them; a large fighter craft with all the requisite weaponry that entailed.

“Yeah, I know; pretty damn awesome, right?” Brian crossed his arms proudly before waving to Gabe with a spider limb. “Now then, Gabe, activate the Magnetic Link system to put this baby back together!”

With a nod, the goatling flipped the “M-VAM” switch back up, causing blue beams to leap between each part as they drew together. In roughly five seconds, the airship reassembled its standard form, just in time to complete its landing right on the pad atop the base. The onlooking members burst into applause as the engines died down; even Tsuneo looked impressed.

“Nice…” he mused, sizing up the weapons he’d seen on display. “Fast diversion crafts from the outer parts, a heavy carrier for our growing numbers, an assault craft for bringing the heat in spades…” He nodded approvingly; this was something that he might’ve seen back in his militaristic home dimension, had they enough ingenuity. “…and you even added a well-thought-out method to bring it all back together. You’ve outdone yourself, Sarge.”

Brian rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Aah, well…I can’t take _all_ the credit…”

“_…just the elbow grease._” Zeus finished, earning a chuckle from his host. “_Gabe’s the one who figured out most of the scientific aspects and came up with the actual crafts we split ‘em into._”

“Impressive indeed, little one,” Zuula clicked approvingly. “You’re quite the talented little morsel, aren’t you~?”

“Uhh…eh heh heh heh…thanks?” Gabe managed a nervous smile, slightly unsettled by the Carcanod’s choice of words.

“Zuula, quit scaring the new blood,” Max sighed. “Something tells me that you’ll have more fear than you could handle once we get to Neo-Tokyo.” He glanced back at Becky, who looked like she was fighting back nausea at the mere mention of their destination.

“What can I say? It's what I do,” Zuula replied with a chuckle. “It’d be like telling a dog to stop walking on all fours…or a wasp not to sting an intruder~”

Scafe bristled at the obvious implication as Becky stiffened, but someone else beat him to the retort. “We could do without the less-than-subtle threats, ya know!” JoJo spoke more harshly than the Society had yet heard him, taking even Zuula aback slightly.

“Yo Eels,” Dante whispered. “What’re the odds that Mr. Flamboyant over there ain’t too fond of wasps either?”

“Pretty damn high,” Eli replied softly. “I think one of the little buggers got him somewhere _uncomfortable_ way back when……couldn’t see for a month, I heard.”

Dante could only suck in a sympathetic breath through his teeth as Brian coughed to get the group back on track. “Alright, everyone; now that you’ve seen our ship’s new trick, it’s time for us to head out. Are you all prepared?”

“I’m sure we’re as ready as we’re going to be,” Tsuneo added before stepping up beside Brian. “The better question is…who’s flying what? Five ships means five pilots; I can handle the main helm, but which three are gonna run interference, and who’s gonna run the carrier?”

“I’ll fly one of them!” Emily called, looking like a kid in a candy store. “I mean…it’s as easy as driving a car, right?”

“…E…Em.” Brian shook his head. “Driving a car and flying a ship are two _totally_ different things…”

“Oh yeah? How?” Emily folded her arms as she squinted at the ship. “I mean, I think I saw a thingamabob that looks like a steering wheel. What’s so hard about-”

“A Z-Axis to worry about, for starters,” Tsuneo interrupted. “Yknow, the Up-Down part? It’s a whole ‘nother level of calculations to fly rather than drive.”

“…Eewww…” Emily stuck her tongue out in disgust. “Nobody said there’d be _math._ Forget it, then - I call shotgun!”

“I…uh…don’t think there _is_ a ‘shotgun’ position in there…” Becky piped up, redoubling Emily’s scowl.

“Actually, all of the weapons in the other ships have manual control,” Gabe corrected. “If she’s a good shot, she can take a turret seat.”

“Woo! Shotgun!” Emily immediately started bouncing on the balls of her feet, her previous enthusiasm back with interest.

“Well, in that case, I’ll take role as an interference pilot,” Juliet said. “One of the perks of working in White Noise is a comprehensive course in combat flying.”

“As much as I’d prefer flying with my wings, I too can run interference.” Tim smiled as he stepped forward. “I’ve had a life_time_ to understand how to fly without a steering wheel in my hands, and plenty of research into doing so _with_ one. Putting them together won’t be too hard…in fact, I dare say it’ll go like _clockwork~_” He let out a small chuckle at the chorus of groans behind him.

“I can handle some flying too-” Dante was about to volunteer, only to be none-too-gently tossed back by his significant other as she stepped forward in turn.

“Take my turret seat; I’ll make sure you don’t throw us into the water on the way outta here.” Zs’s mocking comment only got a shrug from Dante in return as Gabe moved to stand beside her.

“Well, since I helped build some of the systems and I know a fair bit about piloting as well, I’ll take the carrier seat.” His words were calm, but his eyes sparkled with anticipation.

“As for gunner seats, we got Em, Dante, and…” Brian rattled off the names before noticing Irene and Becky stepping forward. “You two as well? Alright, good.” He nodded as all the piloting spots were filled, only to pause when he saw Hanna raising a hand. “Something up, Hanna?”

“Yes,” the phantom responded. “I was just curious as to how you wish this particular plot twist to unfold; should we move as a squadron, approach from different angles, or fly as a unit and separate en route?”

Recognizing his cue, Tsuneo answered the question. “Interference pilots take point as scout vessels. The power craft takes the middle; the cargo craft brings up the rear. Since most of you are gonna be in the carrier, that one needs to be protected the most; the interference line not only scans ahead for threats, but runs them off the two crafts behind them. If we need the firepower, the primary craft can jet ahead or pull back to direct as necessary.”

“_Damn,_ Tsuneo,” Eli whistled. “You’re right on top of this shit - guess that hellhole of a home dimension did ya some good after all~” A sharp gaze immediately told him that his compliment was not well-received. “Shit, sorry. Just tryin’ to give credit where credit’s due - forgot that’s kinda a sore spot.”

“But you’re right…ZOMA taught me a lot about the situation we’re in.” The undead warrior heaved a sigh, glancing at the all-too-familiar letters emblazoned on the back of the jacket he always wore before returning his attention to his fellow Society members. “Well, since we have our positions, load up for takeoff.”

“Wait!!” cried B.Nana. “Do we even _know_ anything about this ‘Neo-Tokyo’ place? I mean, this is probably our first time going there…and yes, I know that the place is in _baaaaad_ shape right now, but it still wouldn’t hurt to at least get ourselves acquainted with the place, right?”

“That’s not a bad point,” Scafe commented. “Saturn knows we’re coming for her, so she might try to set a trap. I mean…you _do_ remember what some of her wasps can do, right?” The look he shot his fellow Councilmen told the others that it was something _very_ bad.

“Bug-girl aside, we might wanna keep a low profile at the same time,” Juliet chimed in. “I don’t know…but I just got this _feeling_ that we’ll get ourselves into something bad if we get carried away. She’ll be entrenched to all hell and back by now, so we’re _definitely_ gonna be fighting on her turf and her terms.”

“Well, it’s a good thing I often go there myself~” Eli chuckled softly. “_Konnichiwa and Wassup,_ after all - man, I love that city…”

“Whoa!” Scafe gasped. “You never told us you went to Neo-Tokyo!”

“No worries,” Eli chuckled. “If a guide is what you want, then I’m your man. And speaking of which…” His brows furrowed as he recalled the news reports. “Those wasps struck up the 109, one of the biggest stores in Neo-Tokyo, and the Scramble Square’s basically around the center of commerce…yep, Saturn picked a _bad_ place to set up shop. We can’t just blow up the hive from the sky; it’ll cripple the whole city and send Nexian economics into chaos…more than usual.”

“So, we have to…go in…and clear it out…the old-fashioned way…?” It was unclear if JoJo’s shiver was disgust or apprehension.

“Much like Sylvie’s herd, the wasps live and die by their queen…and the Queen is nestled snug in Saturn’s thick skull.” Brian tapped his head for emphasis. “If we squash the Queen, the hive and its workers should wither away pretty damn quickly. No saving the 109, considering how dug in they looked, but the rest of the city would probably be okay.”

“Figures,” Eli sighed. “Guess I won’t be getting any souvenirs from Neo-Tokyo for a while…Saturn’s gonna _pay_ for this.”

“I hear that, Eels,” Brian replied. “On that note, with our plans of flight, attack _and_ lunch set, let’s get going, Society!”

A resounding “Yes Sir!” erupted from the group as they all piled into the ship, with the pilots and gunners all going to their respective cockpits. Dante and Zs took the left pod while Emily and Juliet sat in the right; Tim and Irene boarded the skiff, Gabe and Becky positioned themselves in the carrier, and the Council took the bridge, with everyone else piled into the carrier’s bus-like seating.

“Ready, everyone?” Brian nodded from the command center to his fellow Councilmen, hearing the affirmative calls from each pilot seat, Tsuneo included. Max gave the thumbs up from the gunner pod, Scafe nodded back from the weapon systems, and Eli gave the okay from the radar systems. “Then let’s go! _Ruby Revenant_, LAUNCH!”

The craft tore off from the landing pad like a bat out of hell with Tsuneo at the helm. Once they had enough altitude, Brian turned the switch to release the shards. Alarm bells blared in each section to prepare the pilots for control to be turned over. As the ship separated into its components, the three lighter pods jetted ahead as the large carrier pod trailed behind the Council’s fighter ship, falling easily into formation as they sped across the boundless oceans ahead…

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Grrr…where the hell _is_ she…?”

Weiss glowered at the television from his favorite chair in the living room of the Azure HQ, beer in hand as he waited for Amethyst to return. He had sent his girlfriend to seek out Saturn, who had vanished without a trace; he hadn’t seen or heard a single wasp all day. Normally, Weiss would welcome the silence; as it was, all he felt was irritation. He had a sinking suspicion that Saturn had caught wind of Purgatory’s Cathedral plan, and was plotting something drastic to “save” the object of her twisted affections.

Eventually, he was roused from his brooding by the sound of the front door opening and closing, followed by tentative hoofbeats behind him. “W-W-Weiss…” Amethyst froze as her boyfriend’s free hand was raised from the chair before her.

“You’d better tell me that you’ve got the walking bug’s nest outside, because unless I’ve gone deaf…I don’t hear any buzzing.”

“T...That’s…kinda the bad news I wanted to go on…” Amethyst responded nervously. “I’ve turned this city upside-down, but…I can’t find Saturn anywhere.” She flinched as electricity sparked between Weiss’s fingers, but he only lowered his hand with a low growl.

“Well…that’s just fucking _perfect,_” he muttered. “I mean, not that I _like_ the whiny bitch and her lady-boner for the resident pain-in-our-asses…but the way things are…” He straightened up in his chair, turning just enough to regard Amethyst from the corner of his eye. “…You can just _feel_ it, can’t you, Amy?”

The sultry goat-girl tilted her head in confusion. “Uuhh…I…don’t think I follow…”

“Those Society fuckers…those _goddamned_ Crimson Boyscouts…” Weiss suddenly slammed his fist into the arm of his chair, visibly charring it with the lightning that arced from between his fingers. “THEY ARE **LAUGHING** AT US!!! AT _ME!!!_ They think that they’ve actually got a fucking _chance_ against the best of the best, just ‘cause they’ve managed to dodge a few of our warning shots…but y’know something…? _THEY’RE WRONG!!!_”

Amethyst took a small step back at Weiss’s volatile mood. “Love…I don’t wanna be the Debbie Downer here, but…maybe we’re biting off more than we can chew.” She paused to see if Weiss would scream at her, but nothing came. “Are you sure we even…stand a chance? We already lost two of our members - annoying ones, granted, but still - to the Society, and they just seem to keep getting stronger. Hell, even Quantum barely made it out alive when he fought _half_ of them… I don’t know, sweetie, but…maybe we should-”

“…Amy…babe…come here…” Weiss’s rage evaporated in an instant, replaced with a voice that was almost…_soothing._ “The stress is getting to ya…come to your hubby.”

Confused to see this side of Weiss, Amethyst nervously approached him. Once she was standing by his chair, he set his beer on its arm, rose to face Amethyst, and softly placed a hand on her cheek.

“Hun…you and I…we’ve been together since we were banned from the Society, right?”

“Y…yeah,” Amethyst said, still unsure why Weiss was being so tender all of a sudden.

“And despite our shortcomings…we’ve gone through so much together,” Weiss continued. “You, me, and every one of these nutcases here in the Initiative…we’ve accomplished much more than _they_ ever could. You and me especially; we’re worth _ten_ of any of ‘em.”

“Hehehe… Well, I suppose you’re rig- ?!” Amethyst froze as Weiss’s grip began to tighten.

“So let’s get…one thing clear.” Weiss’s voice dropped a full octave as his expression became harsher. “If you think, even for _one fucking second_, that I am going to throw in the towel just because of multiple setbacks…then you clearly do not have my best interests in mind, Amethyst.”

“W-What? I…I…that’s not-”

“And I believe you and I made a deal, Amy. Or…have you had second thoughts?” Weiss’s smile was a sick parody of concern. “Would you rather I seek your brother out and rip him apart, piece by **goddamn piece?!**”

Amethyst’s fear immediately went into overdrive. “N-No! Please, Weiss! I was stupid to doubt us…to doubt _you!_ Th-th-things have just been so _bad_ recently…p-p-please, I didn’t…_I didn’t think!_”

“Of _course_ you didn’t, honey.” Weiss’s words were soft, but his grip tightened even more as he stared directly into Amethyst’s terrified eyes, lowering his shades with his free hand to show the electricity surging behind his pupils. “That’s why I’m giving you a friendly reminder…They. Have. Won. _Nothing!_ Everything we’ve done before was just practice…I swear on the Nexus, we _will_ get the upper hand on them. It might be Purgatory and her Cathedral. It might be 1:30, Quantum, or Saturn…wherever the hell she is. Hell, it might be even be you or _me_ doing the heavy lifting…but I assure you, we _will_ win!” His eyes seemed to flash with renewed conviction and a hint of madness. “We will _gut_ each and every last one of those fucking fools like the fucking _fish_ that they are! And I want you to be with me when it happens, Amy…because if you _aren’t_ with me, then _you are against me._ And I will _personally_ make your life a living **hell**…and that goes _**double**_ for your fucking brat of a brother.”

With that, Weiss threw Amethyst to the ground, heaving an exhausted sigh as he picked up his beer and took another swig. He ignored the soft whimpers behind him as he sat down in his chair, grabbed the remote with his free hand, and began flipping through the channels. He perked up when he hit the news channel, showing a chopper flying over a strange disturbance in Neo-Tokyo. It seemed as if the whole city was engulfed in a layer of pitch-black fog, but there was something oddly…_familiar_ about it.

“And here we are on the scene of the biggest infestation ever observed in Nexian history, right in the center of Neo-Tokyo’s own Scramble Square. With the tumorous mass below us having grown in seemingly overnight, this catastrophe may just spell the end of this great city…”

The screen switched to a video of the morning’s events, showing the (much smaller) growth splitting open to disgorge clouds of wasps; in an inset, another video revealed that the “fog” in the city was actually formed from countless buzzing bodies, almost choking the streets through sheer weight of numbers. Seeing this, all Weiss could do was spit out all the beer he’d just chugged.

“Wh…wh-what the…” He paused to wipe his mouth, but his eyes never left the screen. “What…the actual…**FUCK?!**” He leapt to his feet with a scream of fury and shock. “**AMETHYST!!!** GET YOUR USELESS ASS OFF OF THE FLOOR AND _LOOK_ AT THIS SHIT!!!”

The cyborg goat-girl was slow to respond, still trying to regain a shred of composure after Weiss’s latest outburst, but she eventually rose and turned her watering gaze to the television. “Oh…oh no…” she murmured. “Don’t tell me…is that…?”

“No, it’s the _other_ walking wasp’s nest who lives down the street!” Weiss could barely get out that snark through his gritted teeth. “OF _COURSE_ IT’S HER!!! THAT WASP-INFESTED, SWISS-CHEESED SKULL-HEAD HAS _DEFIED_ MY ORDERS AND GONE OFF TO **DO HER OWN SHIT!!!**”

Seeing a blood vessel pulsing in Weiss’s bald pate, Amethyst swallowed her fear and tried to calm him down. “H-hang on a sec, Weissy…m-maybe this won’t be quite so bad…” It took all of her resolve not to bolt as Weiss’s fiery glare lighted on her. “Saturn’s been nothing but a bee in your bonnet for a while now, and I’d bet my perfect boobs that she’s trying to ‘save’ the NeverDunce from Purgatory’s secret weapon. Maybe…maybe it’s _better_ this way; she’s giving the Society something else to worry about!” She nodded optimistically. “After all, any time they spend focused on _her_ is more time for us to work on _your_ bigger and badder plots…r-right?”

Weiss felt the tide of his anger beginning to descend as he considered Amethyst’s words. After a few tense moments, he heaved a heavy sigh and pointed to the door. “Tell Quantum to hurry his ass up with the Chimera’s upgrades; I have an angel to rush while Saturn gets herself squashed. Hell, _maybe_ she’ll surprise me and take a Crimson Cunt or two with her.” He punctuated his sarcastic hopes with a huge eyeroll that settled back on Amethyst.

“Ri-right away, Weissy! You’re the boss!” With a painfully forced smile, Amethyst all but ran to the door leading to the Azure Initiative’s lab, where Quantum was still working on the next version of the Crimson Chimera. Once the door had swung shut behind her, Weiss looked back at the news with renewed disdain.

“I’m _surrounded_ by useless trash, I swear…”

-THE SOCIETY WILL RETURN-


	2. Neo-Tokyo Sting Operation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The stage is set for the Society to make its appearance in Neo-Tokyo.

## Tales of the Society - The Azure Age

### Chapter 8.2: Neo-Tokyo Sting Operation

_ **Last time on Tales of the Society...** _

_Everything seemed to be in place for the Society to finally take the offensive initiative against the Azure Initiative, but news of Saturn’s invasion of Neo-Tokyo brought that train of thought to an abrupt halt. Fortunately, Tsuneo had recovered at long last; once brought up to speed on the situation, he came up with a plan for the group to infiltrate the overrun Scramble Square: modifying the _Ruby Revenant_ to become a squadron of smaller, more mobile ships!_

_While Brian and Gabe set about this task, Tsuneo took the time to drop a revelation of his own; the dark presence that took over his body during the Clusterfuck Attack was the **Shadow Fiend,** an evil creature of myth from his own universe. While Tsuneo fears the worst should the Fiend break loose again, the rest of the Society vowed to keep him from falling to its influence._

_Soon, the Society assembled in the hangar to discover the fruits of Brian and Gabe’s work; a completely revamped _Ruby Revenant_, able to split into five smaller crafts. They quickly boarded the new airship and set off to put an end to Saturn’s scheme…but will they be able to stop her before the Initiative’s mysterious “Cathedral” is completed?_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Guys...I think we’re here.” Flying at the front of the pack, Juliet was the first to see the devastated Neo-Tokyo - rather, the tops of its tallest buildings amid a colossal black cloud of wasps. “Damn…how are we going to get anywhere in there? All these bullets won’t do anything to the wasp clouds…”

“That’s why I thought ahead a little,” Brian answered. “These machine guns are loaded with **Liquid Nitrogen Pellets.** The velocity should make ‘em shatter about 100 feet ahead, releasing clouds of icy liquid to flash-freeze these things _en masse_ without damaging the buildings! The catch, though…we only have a few clips compared to our normal bullets. Y’know how hard it is to draw an efficient loading mechanism for those things? I didn’t have time for that!”

“And that’s why you should’ve let _me_ drive, bro~” Matt snarked half-heartedly. “Guess we’ll have to make our shots count, then.”

“There is not enough ice in the _world_ for this kind of infestation…” Becky allowed herself a whimper from her gunner’s seat in the carrier. “So, what’re in these rockets, then?”

“LN2 Dispersal units; basically like the pellet guns, but they release it in a big cloud where they land, instead of just a second after they’re shot out,” Brian answered back. “It’ll be your job to clear a landing zone with those things, so once we see the heart, that’s your target. Thankfully, the targeting computers are copied over from the ones we used in the main guns, so you should be fine aiming ‘em once we get a lock from the main fighter.”

“We’ll only get one shot at this,” Max warned. “The moment we open fire, the whole hive will be on full alert…and even then, we don’t have a big window to get out of the open air once we disembark. Carrier pod passengers, notice the blue grenades on the wall? Those are our ticket out once we land; use ‘em right and we can get inside with minimal damage.”

“It’s refreshing to actually _have_ a plan for once,” Irene sighed from the skiff’s gunner seat as she looked at the two pods flanking her and Tim’s vessel. “So…the three of us punch a hole to the center of town, Becky fires off the rocket pods to clear our landing zone, we recombine, land, and basically make a mad dash for the nearest point of entry we can get to?”

“That seems to be the plan, yes,” Tim replied smoothly. “And it’s _still_ more of a plan than I’m used to~” He couldn’t help but chuckle at the expense of their leaders.

“Hey, everyone knows that the reckless path is always the easiest! …Or the most fun. I kinda forgot.” Dante snickered from his gunner’s seat, trusting that Zs’s retaliation would be stymied by the risk of falling out of formation; the sudden aileron roll of her pod shook that idea right out of him.

“Gotcha! Just tell me when to start flash-freezing bugs!” Emily giggled from her seat, her thumbs hovering above the triggers.

“Steady…” Brian’s order came through to the gunners as the three lead ships assembled in a wide triangle to maximize the spread of their effective firing arc. Adjusting for aim, they all focused in tense silence as they drew ever closer; soon, they were just under a kilometer from the wasp cloud and closing fast.

“Keep an eye on that radar, Eli,” Tsuneo ordered from his pilot’s seat. “We need to milk the element of surprise as long as possible, but the _second_ those wasps catch on…”

“I know, I know…” The chinchilla rolled his eyes at the superfluous reminder, but only a little; he continued watching the displays in front of him for even the slightest change in the mass of insects looming ahead. Suddenly, he saw a ripple of collective upward movement and heard a small, threatening rise in the buzzing pitch; the wasps were moving to intercept them. “There’s our sweet spot!” he cried.

“**BLAST THOSE BUGS!!!**” Brian practically screamed into the comms as the three lead ships opened fire at the thickening formation. Clouds of white quickly dispersed in front of the ships, freezing any wasps caught in their range; the ones that weren’t hit by the initial barrage tried to fly out of the way of the billowing ivory ice puffs floating amid their ranks. Max fired directly into the center of the triangle to freeze the ones trapped in between the clouds as the carrier ship flew near-blind through all the ice.

“HA HA HA HA!!! It’s working!” Scafe cheered. “Eat ice, you insectoid abominations!”

“_Don’t get cocky,_” Zeus called from Brian’s palm. “_Those casualties aren’t even a love tap to Saturn’s brood; in terms of the whole swarm, I think we’re just pissing them off._”

Indeed, the clouds of liquid nitrogen looked almost paper-thin amid the darkness of the encroaching wasps, shifting and surging like water as they tried to get around the freezing barrage. Even amid the roar of engines and the crackle of ice, the Society could hear the angry buzzing on every side; a promise of excruciating pain the instant the swarm found the barest opening in the lethal vapor…

“I _really_ don’t like the sound of that…” JoJo murmured.

“Don’t worry, we’re almost there… Becky, get ready to fire! The rest of you, when those missiles are free, stand by for re-linking; Scafe, prepare our landing countermeasure!” Brian barked out his orders as the dragonic Councilman flicked the switches at his console. 

“You heard the man, Becky,” Gabe called. “Get ready to fire the moment Eli locks onto our target!”

“O-Okay…” For once, Becky was the one shivering as she thumbed the missile controls, staring intently at the targeting computer as it searched for the lock Eli was desperately trying to line up. “Mi-missiles armed…w-w-waiting for target conf-firmation…” 

“You better find that opening fast, Eli; we’re runnin’ outta rounds in these things!” Emily cried out, noting her ammo reserves dipping below 20%. Irene and Dante both corroborated that sentiment; coupled with Becky’s nervous whimpers, the tension was almost as thick as the wasp swarm closing in on the Society’s aircraft.

“Keep calm, Becky, you can do this…” Scafe did his best to encourage his girlfriend from his own seat in the lead craft, even as the comm lines started to fill with static due to all the wasps’ interference. Finally, Eli’s terminal lit up with a loud beep, simultaneously with Becky’s own. 

“NOW!!!” Eli called into the comms, prompting Becky to fire all of the carrier’s missiles in a mad salvo. The rockets careened toward the ground with due speed in a wide spread, their apparent randomness actually a series of precisely-targeted locations; when they touched down ahead, they released a huge white barrier of ice that framed a landing space just large enough for the _Ruby Revenant_ to land. The ice clouds converging on that central spot billowed up momentarily before flattening back out, scattering the wasps near the barrier.

“All ships converge and prepare to land. Irene, Max, keep the pressure going throughout; Carrier passengers, grab those freezing grenades!” Brian’s orders were swift and concise, earning nods from each of their recipients as Tsuneo activated the mag links, pulling back to fill out formation atop the carrier craft. The other three ships followed suit, quickly linking up as the airship descended to the ground. 

“Shards united; activating landing countermeasures!” Scafe called out as he hit the big red button on his console, causing the top of the ship to spew jets of liquid nitrogen directly upwards. As the Society predicted, the frosty clouds hit the first wave of wasps trying to swarm in from above, giving their landing zone a blanket of ice as the wheels touched down on the cracked pavement. Normally, the Society would take a moment to sigh in relief, but they knew better than that; the ice around them was dark from the shadows of countless more wasps gathering around their frozen brethren.

“C’mon everyone, get the lead out!” Eli called into the comms as the carrier passengers pushed out the bay doors, the buzzing barely audible amid all the crackling and hissing of ice. Everyone had a blue grenade handy as they scanned the landing site for any possible route of entry to Saturn’s hive; soon, Tavo managed to spot the opening of a fleshy tunnel nearby.

“Sweet Turisas, it is fucking _cold_ out here…what say we get inside?” The unicorn smiled just a little despite the copious goosebumps under his fur. “Everyone, one to the left and right every 20 steps; keep running straight from here! FUCKING _GO!_”

With a collective nod, everyone bolted out the back of the airship, tossing their grenades at their sides to create walls of icy steam to deter the wasps. This got them pelted by a veritable rain of frozen bugs, but it proved more annoying than dangerous as they ran for the tunnel; first the carrier crew, then the three pods’ pilots and gunners, and the Councilmen bringing up the rear, with Tsuneo at the very back, backpedaling to make sure the clouds held. He had barely made it into the fleshy tunnel before Becky sealed the entrance with a wall of ice; mere heartbeats later, it visibly darkened as the swarm gathered around the other side, their furious buzzing still audible.

“Whew…_that_ shaved a few years off my lifespan…” JoJo finally caught his breath as he joined most of the Society in a collective sigh. Becky was the lone exception, being occupied with forming a second, thinner icy wall behind them; a “better safe than sorry” reflex by blocking the way at their backs.

“Right…we’re in. Now what?” Matt asked, flicking out a scythe from one of his arms. “The 109’s that way, so why’d Becky block off the heart of the hive?”

“Why would Saturn put herself so close to the center of the hive itself?” Brian reasoned. “If the hive goes down, she can still beat a hasty retreat, but if she dies, both the hive and her swarm go with her. She’s probably taking the height advantage here to know when she’s gotta scram, so we’re better off heading that way instead of just destroying the hive.”

“Huh…guess you _do_ remember some of White Noise’s tactical classes, Silk Butt.” Juliet crossed her arms, but the small glint in her eyes betrayed her amusement as she turned to Eli. “So, Anime Fuzzball, wanna lead on through the 109? You know the layout.”

“Anything for a pretty lady~” Eli snarked, taking out his staff as he moved to the front of the group. “Just watch your step, everyone - that swarm out there was just the welcome wagon. Saturn’s probably kept the _really_ ugly ones on hive-guarding duty…and the rest are probably taking another way in as we speak.”

“As unnerving as it sounds, we’ll wanna stick to these tunnels and the inner rooms of the 109; no windows means the wasps can only come in one or two directions at a time,” Tsuneo said. “Becky can handle the swarm, but it’ll be up to us when Saturn’s bigger bugs try to block our way.”

Brian nodded in agreement as he drew up a liquid nitrogen gun for himself. “Remember, everyone, _no fire or chemical attacks._ The wasps can eat ‘em to supercharge their venom.” Even as he spoke, he could see Irene visibly slump at the reminder; to lift her spirits, he tossed her a hastily-drawn box of blue-tipped rockets. “Here ya go - it’s not much, but it should let you get a few swings at Saturn and her pestilent pals.”

Irene nodded gratefully as she shoved the rockets into a portal. “Thanks, Bunny Butt…but like I said, I’ll focus on what you miss.”

“Hey! How come _she_ gets ice weapons and I don’t?” Matt whined.

“Because you don’t have hands, bro.” Brian rolled his eyes at the mantis’s lament. “Just try to cut ‘em down; your exoskeleton is sting-resistant, after all.”

Matt crossed his arms with an exaggerated pout as Becky hastily gave most of the team’s weapons an icy makeover, prompting Hanna to cough lightly. “I believe that we should move onwards,” he said. “Every moment we delay is another moment for our nemesis to prepare a most unsatisfying conclusion to this tale.”

“Too right.” Tsuneo nodded at the phantom’s observation, leading behind Eli with no weapon in hand for once. The whole group stayed pretty tightly clustered as they wandered through the tunnel, keeping it slow to avoid betraying their location to the swarm.

_At least there’s one advantage to the 109 being built into Saturn’s hive; the wasps are pretty lost navigating around all the twisting hallways._ Eli allowed himself a small smirk as the group moved near-silently in the open halls the tunnel led to. Once the chinchilla had his bearings, the group sped up to find the elevator…only to see the whole thing covered by a mass of pulsating pink flesh.

“…Figures. That’d be too easy.” Brian shook his head at the not-entirely-unexpected obstruction. “The stairwell is probably the same way, ain’t it?” He glanced at Scafe, who was checking the nearby door to find more meaty walls on the glass. “How about maintenance access?” 

“Right over here.” Eli called, having found the employee access door. Hanna phased through the door to unlock it from the other side, allowing the group to squeeze into the cozy room. “And the shaft up is right here…ready for a long climb, guys?”

“Hang on, Eels,” Scafe interjected. “We should scout it out first; check for traps and all.” He picked up Becky in his arms before joining Tim, Hanna and Irene in flying up the indicated shaft. A few floors up, they found a large hole in the wall; thinking fast, Becky erected a wall of ice in the hole, heartbeats before the swarm smashed into it.

“YEP!! NOT SAFE!” she yelped.

“Aaahh, shit!” Scafe snarled. “I’ll bet there’s more of those where that one came from; we better go down and warn the others-” On cue, a pair of hatches slammed shut beneath and above the group, trapping them in the small room. “Dammit…Bex, I think your ice might’ve fried the circuits in the walls there and activated the locks.”

“Well…this story seems to have reached its twist,” Hanna muttered.

“A pretty weak one, honestly.” Irene smirked to herself as she opened a portal beneath her, allowing the “scout group” to return to their allies below. “Yeah, too far up’s a no-go. They’ve punched a hole in the wall up there, and I can only assume they’ve got more of ‘em further up.”

“I suppose that our rapid ascent would prove a bit too _timely_ for our gracious ‘hostess’,” Tim mused. “Still…a short climb up beats no climb at all, and we can probably make our own way if we have to.”

“I’d rather we didn’t,” Max noted, looking at the walls with concern. “This building’s already losing stability thanks to those invasive fleshy tunnels and the wasps breaking holes in everything. At best, more holes will give Saturn’s swarm a shortcut to ambush us; at worst, they’ll bring the whole building down on our heads.” He shook his head as he considered the situation. “Blimey…we’ve really stepped in it now, haven’t we?”

“I _would_ try to raise your spirits, Max…” Brian began, “but I’d rather not get my face punched in _again_ for accidentally tempting fate.” He gave Zeus’s hand-mouth a pointed glare before turning to the flyers. “So, how high up d’you figure we can go?”

“A couple floors,” Hanna replied. “You’ll know it when you see it; there’s a hatch blocking the shaft further up.” 

The rest of the Society gave a few nods as they quickly made their way up the shaft, one by one. Tsuneo was the last up the ladder, making sure they were not being followed. After climbing as high as they could, they took the nearest exit to emerge in a slightly larger room.

“So…looks like it’s this way.” Brian wandered through the main door of the room, only to immediately double back behind the wall beside it as a hail of shots flew through the doorway. A few Society members also sidestepped the projectiles, some even jumping to the walls out of the open doorway as the shots buried themselves in the opposite wall.

“Polyp Turrets. Yep, these things suck.” Eli scowled at the projectiles - organic darts resembling crude imitations of a wasp’s abdomen - as they ruptured with fleshy pops, splattering the surrounding concrete with clear fluid that began melting through it. “Gotta _love_ Saturn’s creativity; acidic stingers fired at subsonic speeds for projectile damage of the _worst_ kind.”

The chinchilla’s shudder was mirrored by his friends, especially JoJo. The idea of what the Polyps could do to him and his friends left him pale-faced and dumbfounded for a few moments before he came to a silent decision. He closed his eyes and sucked in a breath through his nose; when his eyes opened, the fear had been replaced by steely determination.

“Fine…let’s go…!” The battle cry came as a harsh shout as the wolf burst through the doorway once there was a break in the fire, running quickly to draw the turrets’ attention from the opening. He waved his hands in a wide arc, creating a thin veil of blackness that absorbed the next barrage of stingers into itself. Seizing the opportunity, Matt jumped over the canine’s black wall and beheaded a few of the turrets with one of his arms; on the backswing, it detached entirely and flew further down the hall as he cleaved the head off another turret with his other arm. Finally, the mantis caught his thrown arm as it returned to him, slicing through the last turret before reconnecting to its shoulder joint.

“Nice work, JoJo!” Matt smiled back at his ally, only to receive silence in return. In fact, JoJo’s entire posture had changed, giving an air of indifference rather than his previous flamboyance. The mantis shook his head as he shelved the thought for now, instead glancing back at the open doorway where his friends were taking cover. “If those defenses were any hint, I think we’re heading the right way. Let’s keep going further ahead.”

Most of the Society gave nods and words of assent, save Gabe, who glanced around to do a quick headcount. “Hang on a sec; where’s Tsuneo?” He double-checked to confirm that the revenant was not among them before glancing to the ladder, discovering that the rails now ended in small acid burns. “Uh oh…he never got up the ladder, did he?”

“…I have a _bad_ feeling about this.” Irene muttered, her wings white as she peered down the hole. Squint as she might, she could only see blackness past the ruined ladder; more pertinently, she could hear the hated buzzing growing ever louder. “Sorry, Tsuneo. But for everyone’s sake…” She closed her eyes regretfully as she shut the hatch, but a familiar voice promptly sounded over the comms.

“You’ve probably already noticed, but…I’ve been delayed.” Tsuneo’s message was choked with static from a _lot_ of buzzing wings. “Don’t worry about me; the bugs aren’t attacking me for _some_ reason…” His sarcasm was completely audible despite the ungodly sound in their ears. “Just forget me for now, alright? I’ll find another way up there.”

“Roger that. Godspeed…I think you’ll need it.” Scafe shut off the comm link as he held his head with his free hand. “Yeah, let’s get moving… He fell quite far, I’d guess, but I’m sure he’ll catch up. Matt, JoJo, what’s it look like up ahead?”

“Looks like a tunnel further up…and I can see faded footsteps here!” Matt pointed at the small impressions in the fleshy floor ahead. “She’s gone this way before, and recently at that; think it’ll lead us right to her…or into another trap?”

“It’s our best lead right now, but stay close; we can’t afford any more separations,” Brian responded. “Those bugs may keep off of Tsuneo, but the rest of us are fair game, and we’re _toast_ if we get split up again.”

Duly warned, the rest of the Society dashed through the tunnel, going up a floor or two before they ran into another group of Polyp Turrets. With no cover in sight, Max tried to raise some of the concrete in the walls to block the imminent barrage; unfortunately, this ended up taking out the floor beneath their feet, causing most of the group to drop a floor. Trailing at the back, Becky and JoJo managed to skid to a stop just before the new hole, and the flying members reacted in time to avoid the drop. With the group above turning their attention to the Polyps, the group below had time to recover from their fall.

“Ooof…my ass…” Eli groaned aloud, trying to get to his feet. “Nice goin’, Max…but this _does_ put us on a route in their dark zone…” He looked around the room, finding it relatively pristine; there was biomass, to be sure, but not nearly as much as the rest of the makeshift hive. “Hmm…no evidence of wasp activity here on this floor, far as I see… So let’s go, come on…down?” He trailed off as the room seemed to darken; the hole above was quickly filled with pulpy flesh. “…Well, shit. Looks like we got separated again…”

“They’ll be alright up there.” Juliet nodded. “Becky was near the back with Scafe, and she has the ice to block and deal with Saturn’s setups…though I can imagine she’d be pretty slow, with that crippling fear. JoJo too, since he’s got that black veil thing we saw.”

“I just hope he’s okay,” Matt sighed. “I think the pressure’s gotten to him - he seems a lot colder ever since that first turret nest.”

“Not to sound like a jackass, but I’d be more worried about _us_ right now,” Tavo piped up. “Call me crazy, but this floor gives me even _more_ creeps than the other one - it’s too damn quiet!”

“Yeah…what say we get movin’ before Saturn decides to change that on us?” Eli’s rhetorical question prompted the Society members with him to shake off their lingering soreness before following him out of the room, hoping that their absent friends would be alright without them while they closed in on the source of this infestation. Soon, however, they would have problems of their own to worry about; a fact that dawned on them when Emily stopped short.

“Uh, guys, quick question; d’you feel rumbling, or is that just my stomach?” she asked, glancing around as she tried to pinpoint the sensation.

“Emily…let me remind you of a little tip,” Juliet said. “Whenever someone asks ‘is that my stomach rumbling?’ 9 times out of 10…it isn’t.”

“……If that’s the case…we might have a problem, then…” Emily gulped. “Because if that’s not my tummy…it’s something _big._”

The Society joined the Hostilized goat in looking around warily as the distant rumbling began to grow stronger. It wasn’t until Brian drew up a long-range motion tracker that he realized what was going on; a realization that made his blood run cold.

“Guys…?” he began. “I think we should head _that way_, and _fast!_”

“_Unless, of course, you want to be turned into walking tumors by the GIANT WASP CLOUD coming down the hall!_” Zeus added over Brian’s shoulder as the hybrid took his own advice. The rest of the group took just enough time to glance at each other in a silent chorus of “_Oh crap!_” before joining their leader in a mad sprint. It wasn’t long before the familiar sound of angry buzzing could be heard; faint at first, but slowly growing in volume and intensity.

“SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT _SHIT!!!!_” B.Nana cried out. “I DIDN’T EVEN BRING MY BUG SPRAY FOR THIS!! WHAT DO WE DO?!”

“I have an idea: RUN FASTER!” It was a testament to the dire situation that even Dante wasn’t considering options other than fleeing. “From the sound of it, I think they’re gaining!”

“As much as I wanna find ways to make my Deadpool cosplay look more genuine, THIS IS _NOT_ FUCKING ONE OF ‘EM!” Eli bolted ahead of the group with his superior speed, trying to scout a route for them. He rounded a corner further in, prompting the others to follow his lead. “This way; I remember a big bay window being down here! We could lose the swarm around there!”

“I sure fucking hope so!” Brian glanced at his motion tracker, seeing more and more glowing spots pouring into the mass behind them. “Looks like someone rang the dinner bell, and _we’re_ on the menu!”

“As if Sylvie’s mutant fuckers weren’t bad enough for that,” Tavo added under his breath.

“Listen to me, Brian!” Eli was now far enough ahead to need his communicator to stay in touch. “This is a stupid idea, but it could work in our favor! I just passed a ventilation system; think you could draw something to blow a ton of cold air through it? It’d probably kill what’s chasing you, and maybe even clear a few floors! Not much time to act, but…”

“Worth a shot!” Brian finished, already tossing his motion detector to Max as he set to work with his pencil. “Keep those wasps off our asses, guys; I’m about to bring the chill!”

“You got it, Bossman!” Dante shouted, leaping backwards into the wasp cloud with his beam katana at the ready; in moments, his position could only be discerned by his screams of agony and the flashes of his white blade in the black cloud. The Society’s other members took less suicidal approaches; Juliet threw her explosive knives to disperse some of the approaching swarm, Tavo summoned Alcest to bombard the insects with various spells, and B.Nana threw her fruit bombs into the fray, both killing and confusing the wasps as the apparent food _literally_ exploded in their faces.

“Whoo!” cheered the banana-woman. “This beats fly swatting by a long shot! _Eat it,_ you needle-butted freaks!! This is for all the times you stung me while I was taking a dip in the pool!”

“Yeah!! I’m right there with you, B!” Tavo added, taking shots at the wasps with his gun. “**Fuck you,** ya tiny fucking blight demons with wings!!”

“Brian, _please_ tell me you’re almost done!” Gabe yelled frantically, doing what he could by throwing metallic and explosive dodgeballs at the encroaching swarm. “We can’t hold ‘em off for much longer!” Indeed, the entire Society was assaulting the wasps, using their ice-imbued weapons to great effect…but for every insect they slew, twenty more seemed to take its place. Through sheer weight of numbers, the swarm was slowly pushing closer; a foot or two more, and they’d be in range to retaliate…

“Alright, I think I’ve got it!” Brian nodded as he put the finishing touches on some kind of laser device. “Taking a lil’ inspiration for this one, but let’s see how well these vents handle a direct application of _cryogenic lasers!_” He pointed his new weapon at the vent above him, firing a super-chilled beam that quickly travelled through the metallic tunnels toward the centralized ventilation system. The icy air quickly flowed through the vents, turning the mildly pleasant breeze into an arctic chill.

As the Society had hoped, the wasp swarm immediately recoiled from the sudden drop in temperature. Their collective squeal of agony filled the air as they dispersed, darting for the nearest exits into the temperate air outside. Everyone heaved a collective sigh as Zuula dragged Dante to the group, covered in stings and chemical burns.

“Well…that was quite a close sh-shave…brrr…” The Carcanod clicked even more than usual as she shivered. Indeed, everyone looked rather cold, prompting Brian to rub the back of his head apologetically.

“Yeah…that was the downside to this plan.” The hybrid Councilman tossed the spent laser aside as he sketched a knit hat to protect his ears. “But look at the bright side; no more bugs on this floor, and hopefully a few floors above…… Saturn can’t be too far from here, right Eli?”

“Yeah,” The chinchilla responded from further down the hallway over the comms. “I even found some stairs Saturn didn’t muck up! We’re almost there; if the view I could gather from the bay window was right, there’s only two more floors between us and the top!”

“Home stretch is in sight, ain’t no stoppin now!” Dante got up despite his wounds, and immediately yelped from a bad step on a stung foot. “Ngh…C’mon!”

As the group set off to find Eli - with Dante being half-carried and half-dragged by Zs - Scafe called them over the comms. “Hey, thanks for the hand! I see you chilled out the rooms ahead of us…looks like the wasps were planning to swarm us. Shame those Polyps don’t care about cold air; must be drawing heat from the main hivemass. We’ll still be awhile where we are, so go on ahead, you guys!”

“Right-o!” Max nodded. “Take your time and don’t do anything reckless. We’ll soften up Saturn for you when we reach her…”

With that, the group finally reached the stairs, climbing the flights at a decent pace. Unfortunately for them, a few wasps had escaped the cold by burrowing into the fleshy patches on the walls, allowing them to keep watch. One of the hardier ones glimpsed the advancing Society members well enough that Saturn saw them coming.

“Hmm… They’re here now…” she mused aloud. “Guess I’ll have to destroy them personally…but first, how’s my Tsu-Tsu progressing?” She reached out to her swarm through the chilling air, trying to refocus on her beloved’s position. Soon, she found him near the ground floor; unfamiliar with his surroundings, he was mostly trying to work his way upwards while avoiding any large groups of wasps - despite his hunch, he wasn’t about to test his “immunity.” As such, Saturn could easily guide his movements by directing her “babies” to gather in every path but the one she wanted him to take.

“That’s right…come to me, my beloved…destiny is calling us~” Even as she said it, Saturn wondered if Tsuneo realized that he was being herded. “…Forgive me for this, Tsu-Tsu…but I need to make sure your brain won’t silence your heart. You’ve always been your own worst enemy; you put too much faith in your friends…” She bowed her head as she imagined Tsuneo’s likely response to what would happen next…

Confusion. _Betrayal._ **Rage.** All directed at _her_ for taking away that which he valued more than anything, more than _life_ itself… The thought sent a chill down her spine, deeper than any ice…but she would gladly accept his wrath as the cost of bringing her plans to fruition.

“Just you wait, Tsunie. Soon, you’ll understand what I’ve known all along.” If she still had lips, Saturn’s smile would be the embodiment of lovesick madness. You won’t _need_ your friends anymore, just like _I_ won’t need Weiss’s revenge-crazy bastards.” She glanced at the back door to her sanctum, wasps assembling around and within her as she awaited her first victims.

“You won’t need _anyone_ else…_only **me.**_ ”

**-THE SOCIETY WILL RETURN-**


	3. Apocritical Mass

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Saturn's been watching the group and separated Tsuneo from the rest of the Society, preferably to avoid attacking him in the big battle.

## Tales of the Society - The Azure Age

### Chapter 8.3: Apocritical Mass

_ **Last time on Tales of the Society...** _

_Using the modified _Ruby Revenant_’s new ability to split into smaller “Shard” vessels, the Crimson Society set out for Neo-Tokyo, only to find it _literally_ swarming with Saturn’s wasps. With some quick thinking and generous amounts of ice-based weaponry, they managed to force their way through the insects and infiltrate the mall-turned-hive, knowing that they only needed to slay Saturn to put an end to her reign of terror. _

_Unfortunately, approaching Saturn proved a difficult task, given her near-complete observance of her lair and the ever-present threat of her wasps. Tsuneo was isolated very early on by a long drop back to the ground floor, and the rest of the group was split in two by Max’s attempt to protect them from Saturn’s living turrets. After a few more close calls, the bulk of the Society has reached the doors of Saturn’s sanctum…but can they hold out for their friends to make it there? And what of Tsuneo, who’s being led further astray of his allies and closer to Saturn’s trap?  
_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“SATURN!!!”

The yell preceded a swift, powerful blow to the back entrance of the unfinished movie theater atop Neo-Tokyo’s 109 building. The double doors immediately burst open from the force, allowing the bulk of the Society to leap into the auditorium; as they expected, the original structure had been all but supplanted by the hive’s biomass. Amid the usual pulpy flesh, more solid-looking pillars could be seen, presumably supporting the organic addition to the building. Stranger still was the fact that said pillars _could_ be seen; the only wasps in sight were the ones around Saturn herself, standing at the very center of the partially-built stage. The walking hive had turned away from the doors, her beloved “babies” settling over her like flowing hair.

“Welcome, Crimson Society.” The Hive-brid’s sinister tone echoed through the vast, empty auditorium. “I didn’t ask for room service, but we’re not ones to turn down a free meal~”

“…You call _that_ a fucking welcome wagon?!” Dante yelled, sounding profoundly disappointed even as the last of his lingering wounds healed up. “Bitch, you got _celebrities_ in the house; give us our proper respect! I demand at _least_ a couple billion wasps to shred!”

“I got a _bad_ feeling about this, Sarge…” Juliet whispered. “We’re in the ‘Queen’s chambers’, and she has _that_ for her personal escort? This screams ‘ambush.’”

Brian nodded grimly before his girlfriend stepped forward to address their target. “Y’know, Saturn, when I called you a ‘drama queen’, I didn’t mean it _literally._ …‘Cause you’re not actually a queen to anybody but your stupid swarm, geddit~?”

“Nice to see you too, Emily.” Saturn chuckled dryly, not turning an inch despite the undead goat’s taunt. “I almost forgot how _obnoxiously bad_ your sense of humor was; still can’t pass a joke without explaining it first, huh?”

“Dunno; still can’t pass up a shitty novel by Stephanie Try-Hard?” Emily’s retort made Saturn twitch as she struggled to maintain her composure. The Society tensed as the wasps began taking flight, but only to maintain the illusion of hair as Saturn turned to face them.

“I’ll let you have that one…because I’ve got good news for you. This is the _last_ time you’ll ever need to worry about the works of Stephanie Meyer.” Saturn bowed her head to give her skeletal countenance a semblance of a grin. “After all…her books are too awesome to be read _in Hell!_” Despite the blatant threat, her wasps made no move to attack, only furthering the Society’s suspicions.

“Shame _you’ll_ be goin’ that way before long,” Eli piped up from the side. “I mean, why here? Why the 109!?” His voice cracked slightly as he visualized the once-pristine mall, now doomed to crumble one way or another. “If you were going for a low blow, _mission fucking accomplished!!!_”

“_Sorry,_ Eli, but I just couldn’t resist.” Saturn sounded anything but apologetic. “You know what they say; _home is where the heart is._” She raised a wasp-formed eyebrow as the Society did a double-take. “What? Didn’t you read my application form? Neo-Tokyo is where I grew up…and where I became the woman I am today.”

“And where better to feed your brood than the commerce center of one of the busiest parts of your hometown,” Hanna grimly noted. “A motive both sentimental _and_ practical… Impressive, but no less unforgivable.”

“Ohh, you superfreaks want to talk _ethics_ now?” Saturn crossed her arms over her chest as she snarked. “After Marcell’s ‘Suckholite recruitment drive’, I don’t think _you_ have room to talk about the appropriate way to deal with innocents~” Her lone eye gleamed with wicked triumph as she spotted Brian’s wince; there were still a handful of people recovering in the hospital after the Zangaikotsu Island incident, and the hybrid Councilman still blamed himself to some extent. Of course, Emily was quick to jump to her boyfriend’s defense, giving Saturn a look that implied that she was trying to physically burn a hole through her skull.

“What we did to those people is _nothing_ compared to what you’ve done to everyone here; all you’re missing is forcing them to read your poorly-written scratch from the hack queen herself- WHOA!!” Emily’s mockery devolved into a yelp as Saturn’s “hair” suddenly charged straight for her, buzzing furiously.

“THAT’S IT! I was gonna milk the dramatic tension for a while, but now I just want your smart mouth _stung shut!!!_” Saturn gritted her teeth as the Society quickly scattered to avoid the charging swarm. She directed some of the wasps to return to her, ready to defend her from any sneak attacks; meanwhile, a hidden alcove disgorged several hundred more to assault her foes.

“Ooh boy, here we go!” Eli hoped that the remnants of Becky’s icy coating would suffice to deflect the incoming wasps as he spun his staff to block the swarm making a beeline for him. Although most of the insects flew away from the cold, some braved the chill and flew around the staff, forcing Eli to use his coat to take the brunt of their stingers.

“Argh! Not the threads! I _just_ fixed this thing after Quantum!” Eli began dashing around erratically to deter further wasp attacks while he desperately fanned his coat to get the clinging ones off of it. Nearby, Max was keeping busy with wide slashes of his sword, kicking up small dust devils to send the wasps off-course. Matt tried to imitate the move, but the insects simply darted around his flailing scythes.

“Dammit, why’d it have to be a swarm of tiny-ass bugs? I can’t even hit these fuckers…but maybe I can hit their controller…” Smirking behind his mandibles, Matt used the cover of a passing dust devil to turn invisible, sneaking towards Saturn as the battle raged around him. He was almost in range to slash her when she suddenly swung a hand behind her, sending a group of wasps flying directly at him, stinger-first.

“Trying the stealthy approach? _Seriously?_” With Matt diving to avoid the incoming wasps, Saturn marched up and kicked the mantis’s chest to send him staggering back. “You’re an insect too; you should know about our extrasensory capabilities!” Her wasps arced around to attack the stunned mantis, only to veer away as Tavo sent a magic-infused bullet in their direction.

“Guys, not to be a downer here, but…at this rate, The Smiths have a better chance of reuniting than we do of beating Saturn!” With all the targets swarming around the auditorium, it was all the unicorn could do to keep them off of his friends, even with Alcest’s magic bolstering his own. “Brian! If you were gonna pull another pencil-based miracle outta your ass, NOW’S THE TIME!!!”

“_We’re _trying,_ Tavo!_” Zeus yelled back as his host flipped onto his spider limbs to evade another acidic dart. He had scaled a wall to draw in relative peace, only to regret it when several Polyp Turrets erupted from the flesh overhead to harass him. “_HOLY - TITTY - TUMBLING - BEPIS - FUCK - PUNCHERS!!!_” His latest profane tirade was punctuated by his desperate attempts to dodge more of the darts.

“This is just _perfect,_” Gabe groaned to himself as he threw more explosive balls to try and separate the swarms. “We got more Polyps up top, and these ones are packing _heat!_” He dived aside from a particularly large lump of flesh dropping from above, spewing acid from several orifices.

“Oh, _for fuck’s sake!_” Dante dropped a curse of his own as yet another wasp slipped past his guard to sting him. “We could _really_ use the rest of the gang right about now!” He moved to stand back-to-back with Zs, twirling her machete to repel the swarms as well.

“Hell, we could use Tsuneo’s help! That brainy motherfucker would probably have an idea right about now!” Brian shouted angrily as he tried to weave between the shots of the ceiling polyps to regroup with his friends on the ground.

“Keep dreaming, Sergeant!” Saturn laughed. “Tsu-Tsu’s all mine now; there’s _nothing_ you can do to stop true love~!”

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Further down the building, Tsuneo found himself entering a spacious room made wholly of the fleshy masses making up the tunnels he had been led through. His eyes darted around as he searched for other exits and hints to Saturn’s intentions for leading him here. What he noticed was unsettling; Polyp Turrets all over the walls and a substantial swarm of wasps overhead, with their attention fixed solely on him.

“Alright, Saturn, what’s the big idea?” Tsuneo’s loud words sharply contrasted his slow, deliberate gestures - he figured that any sudden movements would set the “attendants” off. “I had a feeling you wanted to lead me somewhere; I didn’t have a choice, so I played along. Now that I’m here…what’s your game?”

“_Ah, there you are, Tsu-Tsu~_” Saturn’s voice seemed to echo through the swarm itself. “_Hope you don’t mind these accommodations for now. Your friends are quite the handful._”

“Leave them out of this, you bitch. If I don’t kill you, they _will._” The NeverDead’s threat prompted a few Polyps to fire near his feet, getting him to stagger away from that spot.

“_Ah ah ah, Tsu-Tsu… That’s no way to talk to your soulmate~_” The snarky giggle filled the air as he clenched his fists. “_After all, I’ll be the only thing you’ve got soon enough~_”

“Like _hell_ you will!” The undead warrior shouted up at the swarm in rage as several more turrets opened fire around him. As he rolled out of the way of those shots, he noticed their unusual ammunition; instead of hissing patches of acid, they left patches of sticky yellow wax on impact.

“_See…that’s your problem._” The swarm of wasps descended a few feet, as if Saturn was trying to look Tsuneo in the eyes. “_You’re your own biggest enemy; always putting everyone else before your own needs and desires._” The room seemed to pulse as every single Polyp Turret aimed at the revenant, ready to fire. “_I’m sorry, Tsu-Tsu…but you need to take some time to **yourself.**_”

The wasps suddenly surged upwards, catching Tsuneo’s attention for a crucial instant; by the time he realized his error, the Polyps were already firing. Tsuneo dodged as best as he could, but the Polyps attacked in waves, with some maintaining the assault while others reloaded; worse yet, every shot that landed slowed him down and left him vulnerable to the next. It wasn’t long before the undead Councilman was totally covered in wax, reducing his movements to a crawl, and _still_ the Polyps continued to fire. The barrage only ceased when Tsuneo was trapped in a solid pillar of smothering wax, unable to move or even breathe (which he fortunately didn’t need to do) as the wasps descended once more.

“_There we go~! Just sit tight; I’ll come back for you after I deal with your friends. Don’t worry, Tsunie, they’ll still be alive and kicking…after all, **my Princesses need hosts too~**_” Despite the saccharine tone in Saturn’s words, the malicious intent was all too obvious, sending Tsuneo’s anger _past_ its boiling point. Red shocks of energy arced over his waxy prison as he was filled with an almost-forgotten feeling; an intense, all-consuming rage that he hadn’t felt since before he entered the Nexus.

“You’ll…do…no…_such…**THING!!!**_” All of the Ether that Tsuneo had stored during his pelting suddenly exploded out of his body, shredding all the wax stuck to him (as well as his jacket) before filling the room with a cloud of red mist. Every wasp that approached the cloud was cut to fine pieces, and the fleshy ground began bleeding profusely as Tsuneo levelled his fiercest glare at the ceiling.

“That does it, bitch…I’m coming up there, and if I see _any_ of my friends laid out by you, I’ll make your death _even more painful!_” He punctuated his threat by summoning his Titan Cleaver and jabbing it into the ground, releasing a geyser of blood that seemed to evaporate into the mist around him. The Polyps’ desperate attacks were in vain; the mist disintegrated their shots before ripping apart the Polyps themselves as it expanded to the walls.

“Saturn made a _huge_ mistake attacking a hyper-populated area like this…the Chaos Factor is off the charts.” Even in his fury, Tsuneo’s tactical analysis was on point. “I feel like I could explode from this power…so I’ll just take all of it out on _her!_” He glared up at the swarm cowering just out of the cloud’s reach. “YOU HEAR THAT, SATURN!? **I’M COMING FOR YOU!!!**”

With that, Tsuneo ripped his Titan Cleaver out of the ground and slashed to the side, pushing the mist just far enough. Walls, ceiling, and wasps alike were torn apart as the whole room burst open like a huge boil, leaving Tsuneo standing in the middle of Scramble Square. He was immediately swarmed by the wasps lingering outside, but they were annihilated in the vaporized Ether around him as he began to stalk towards the 109 building, stopping to obliterate every meaty vein on his way. This served four purposes; further charging his Ether reserves, clearing up some of the wasp infestation, further destabilizing the building, and giving Saturn ample warning of his intentions for her.

It crossed his mind that he might also disrupt the Hive-Brid’s concentration, allowing his friends to take the advantage in their battle. He wasn’t entirely sure if he would be pleased or disappointed if they won before he got there, but he decided that it didn’t particularly matter to him right now.

All that mattered was seeing Saturn’s end with his own two eyes, one way or another…

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

_Shitshitshitshitshitshit**shit…**_

For all her obsession over Tsuneo, Saturn wasn’t stupid enough to think that he wouldn’t be upset with her. From the moment she came up with her plan for him, she was steeling herself for his anger. She knew that the zombie would answer her pleas with denial, insults, and open threats. She had expected him to vent his rage on her swarm and hive. She had even anticipated that he might break out of her trap, forcing her to get a bit more violent.

But she had never even dreamed that _this_ would be the result of her actions - Tsuneo had become a maelstrom of chaotic death, focused solely on her. Her wasps couldn’t even get _near_ him without getting vaporized, her best defenses were only fuelling his power, and he was destroying every shortcut tunnel her brood had made just to bring down her whole hive.

_At this rate, his friends won’t even _need_ to kill me to undo our hard work - he’s a one-man extermination squad! I gotta pick up the pace!_ She sent a mental command to the wasps outside, ordering every last one to converge on her location. _It’s not too late…we can still do this! Once Tsu-Tsu sees that all of his friends are gone, he’ll have no choice but to accept our love! All we need to do…is DESTROY THEM HERE AND NOW!!!_

Mere seconds later, holes opened in the fleshy walls, allowing millions of wasps to pour in from outside. “Fuck! The cavalry has arrived!” Tavo shouted, gaping at the big black clouds as he and everyone with ranged options turned their attention to the incoming swarm. Unfortunately, this left everyone wide open to the Polyps’ fire, with several acidic stingers hitting their marks.

“God dammit!” Max grunted, holding his shoulder as the acid melted through his armor and the bandages beneath. “And there’s no stone in here for me to make a damn barrier!”

“Our ice weapons have faded too; we’re outta options!” Zs added, backing up with the rest of the group as the wasps closed in on them; the Polyps had gone silent, but it felt more like a taunting gesture to prolong their demise.

“Waaaah!” B.Nana wailed. “I don’t wanna become a fruit platter!”

“This is checkmate, Society douchebags! TAKE THEM!!!” Saturn all but screamed her order as the swarm converged on their targets, all rounded up in the corner of the room. The group cringed in anticipation of the pain to come, but Brian saw something at their feet: a hole in space resembling a fiery eye. An instant later, Becky dived out with a blizzard in her wake, blasting icy winds to throw all the attacking bugs off course, freezing a good many of them on the spot.

“You should just lie down in front of a rocket. It’ll be a lot less painful than _this._” Irene’s voice hailed a sailing rocket from the front entrance to the auditorium. Seeing the blue tip, Saturn directed some wasps to lift her out of the way, leaving the projectile to explode in icy spectacle behind her. The beleaguered Society group heaved a collective sigh as their allies showed up to help at last.

“Sorry we were late, Sarge,” Scafe called out from the door. “Between having to _literally_ drag my girl up here and thrashing all the goddamn polyps on the way, I swear you’d have finished a story by now!”

“HEY, FUCK YOU!” Despite his impotent rage, Brian’s relief was palpable. “But I’m willing to let that slide, because you’re just in time!”

“Ahem…I believe that’s _my_ line.” Tim’s quip heralded a blast of light brown energy into the incoming wasps, slowing their motions to a crawl. At the same time, an eerie green cloud appeared around the injured Society members, bringing them out of the corner as another icy rocket exploded in the swarm nearby. “Now then…_time_ to go to work.” With a confident smirk, he dove into combat at flash speeds, carving each wasp down to size in record time. JoJo followed in the pegasus-man’s wake, sending waves of shadow to scatter the wasps and block the Polyps’ fire as the first group of fighters was pulled to safety.

“Dammit, Hanna, couldn’t you have done something about Tim’s puns on the way up?!” Despite his curse, Eli smiled gratefully as he saw the phantom near the doorway, guiding the summoned spirits back to him. As soon as they were lowered to the ground, Irene jumped to the back of the group, nodding to her ethereal ally.

“I’m afraid not, my friend; Irene and I were preoccupied with _this!_” Hanna focused for a moment as green energy appeared between his injured friends, forming ethereal chains that seemed to flow through their chests. Once everyone was linked, Irene put her hands to Brian’s back, focusing the healing light she’d demonstrated earlier. The light rapidly spread through the chains, healing everyone at once - in moments, they were as good as new!  
“Wooow…pretty lights…” B.Nana cooed as the acid burns on her peel vanished. “I love a magic trick…especially one that heals everybody at the same time!”

“Gotta say, I’m impressed,” Zs gave Irene a small nod of gratitude. “This sure works better than my natural healing factor.”

“Honestly, _I’m_ impressed that worked the first time!” Irene couldn’t help but laugh a little as she saw her work in action. “Those Polyps got Scafe and Tim pretty good earlier, but Hanna suggested a spirit bind to bounce my healing to save on time and energy.”

“Holy mother of Slayer,” Tavo gasped. “That trick really works - thanks, Irene!”

“You should be thanking _Hanna_ for recognizing **spirit magic** at a glance.” Irene shot a grateful smile at the phantom as he dispelled his chains, allowing their friends to jump back to their feet. “It’s a good thing he joined when he did - he taught me a hell of a lot about my new powers. More on that later, though; for now, give Saturn _hell_!” She promptly regretted her encouragement as Dante went charging in as recklessly as before.

“Round Two, wasp-cunt! LEEROOOOOOOOOOY JENKIIINS!!!” The raccoon-dog’s maniacal cackle prompted a mass facepalm from his friends.

“That _wasn’t_ an invitation to rush headlong into danger, _you fucking dumbass!_” Irene’s wings turned a strange mix of red, white, and green as Dante was swatted down by a massive cloud of wasps. The Society’s return to full power did not go unnoticed by Saturn; she directed the wasps carrying her to take her up to the ceiling as the rest swarmed her foes.

“This changes _nothing!_ All you did was round yourselves up; annihilating you all at once just became even easier!” Saturn shouted down at the group as the swarm surrounded the entrance, with Becky creating a globe of ice to protect them. “You can gather up the armies of the _entire fucking Nexus_ for all I care - I’ll _still_ destroy ‘em all, just for Tsu-Tsu! NOTHING OVERCOMES THE POWER OF TRUE LOVE!!!”

“Love…? You call _this_ love?” Irene’s wings went pitch-black in an instant. “What you’re doing _isn’t_ love; it’s _obsession._ How in the Nine do you think you’ll earn Tsuneo’s - hell, _anyone’s_ \- love by acting like a total loon? If this is your way of showing love, then it’s no wonder Tsuneo doesn’t want to be anywhere near you!“

“Uhh, Irene…?” Sensing danger, Brian tried to interject, but Saturn immediately shut him out with a scoff.

“Don’t you _dare_ preach to me,” she hissed. “You’re just like the rest of these idiots; trying to warp Tsu-Tsu’s destiny by putting ideas in his head! What do _you_ know about what he wants?! Tsunie is the kind of man that no one can understand…no one but _me!_” Her one good eye seemed to flash as she glowered down at the icy globe.

“_I_ understand what he’s been through! **I** understand what it’s like to be consumed from the inside-out and kept on the border of life and death! **_I_** understand what it feels like to become a freak of nature…because someone just couldn’t leave well enough alone!” Were she still capable of it, she might’ve shed a tear before her contempt returned in force. “And what are _you,_ huh?! Just some random nobody that thinks they can come in and swipe what _doesn’t belong to them!_ You can’t even offer him anything in return! But me? Hahaha…I’m the _perfect_ match for him~!”

Irene’s hateful glare intensified, pushing through her friends as she stalked to the edge of the icy barricade. “_I_ don’t care what either of you have been through!” she snarled. “The simple fact is that he’ll _never_ return your so-called ‘affection’ when _you’re_ nothing but a stalker inspired by a shitty series that should’ve never existed, intent on taking away everything he _actually_ cares about! Because we’re his friends, _we_ understand how he feels, more than any deranged stalker _ever_ could!”

Saturn’s indignation had reached a level where she barely even registered the jab at Stephanie Meyer. “Oh, I see what’s happening here… You’ve got the hots for him, don’t you?!” Her sneering tone became ever more sarcastic and incredulous as her wasps lowered her towards the ice wall. “Four words, you brainless butterfly: **HE! AIN’T! YOUR! TYPE!**” Her words were echoed by her wasps’ furious buzzing as Irene’s wings did their level best to darken even further.

“Yeah!? Well, newsflash, you walking hive: **NEITHER! ARE!! _YOU!!!_**” Had she screamed her retort any louder, it might’ve engraved itself on the inside of Becky’s ice globe; as it was, it only brought relative silence to the auditorium. The other Society members were stunned - with some of the keener-eared ones reeling in pain - and the wasps’ wings beat at the bare minimum to keep themselves afloat. It was as if everyone was holding their breath, waiting to see what would happen as Saturn processed those three deadly words.

“You…_dare_ question destiny?!” she said at last. “What makes you so sure of that!?” She descended as far as her wasps dared, scowling at the dome of ice. On the other side, Irene stepped as close to the silhouette as she could, locking her silver gaze to the Hive-Brid’s one good eye.

“Because it’s basic human decency to let people have friends. Face it; **he will _never_ love you for what you intend to do.**”

“SHUT UP!!!” Saturn went from dangerously quiet to ear-splittingly loud in a heartbeat. “YES HE WILL!!! HE _WILL_ LOVE ME!!! HE WILL HE WILL HE W-”

“Open your fucking eyes, Saturn!” Brian finally shook off his shock and apprehension to pipe up from behind Irene. “Do you honestly think that Tsuneo would _ever_ fall for someone like you?! This has nothing to do with looks alone; hell, it doesn’t even take your freaky-ass swarm into account! As his best friend, I can tell you that he only cares about the _inside_…and what’s inside _your_ heart is the ugliest thing in _this entire hive!_ No amount of sob stories or wasps could _ever_ hide that!”

“STOP!! TALKING!! _STOP!!!_ YOU'RE LYING! ALL OF YOU ARE **LYYYYING!!!**” Saturn’s screams rivalled Marcell’s at this point.

“_You’re the one who is lying! To yourself!_” Zeus retorted. “_You're living in a fantasy world where you think Tsuneo would even spare you a second glance! You call your actions an act of love…but I call them ‘desperation and pure twisted obsession’. And when a Parasite like myself knows this more than a mortal, you _know_ something is fucking wrong!_”

“SHUT UP! _SHUT UP!!_ **SHUT…UUPPP!!!**” Saturn clutched at her head, somewhere between covering her ear holes and scratching furiously at her skull. Her mind was replaying the sight of Tsuneo’s rage and his promise of brutal vengeance; even now, she could sense him drawing ever closer to her lair…

“Admit it, Saturn.” Irene would have pointed dramatically if she had the room in the globe. “You _cannot_ and will _never_ get Tsuneo to love you! No matter how hard you fucking tr-”

**I…SAID…_SHUT THE FUCK UP!!!!_** Saturn prepared to hurl further verbal abuse at Irene, but her pupil suddenly shrunk as a large crack appeared on her skull. Everyone stared in confusion as the Hive-Brid’s body went limp; if not for the wasps keeping her aloft, she would’ve probably dropped to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.

“…Uuhh…was that…_supposed_ to happen?” Scafe inquired.

“Hmph…looks like she finally broke…” JoJo said coldly.

Just then, Saturn’s head twitched as small wasps crawled from the crack of her skull, followed by rivulets of thick black liquid. The same ichor began dripping from her mouth as her eye vanished entirely. Slowly, she sat up and returned her attention to the group; however, a different voice came out of her lipless mouth.

“_…Well…this is rather…peculiar,_” it said. “_You somehow managed to damage Saturn’s mind to the point where she nearly regained full control of her body… Her anger almost drove her to reject me entirely…how peculiar…_”

“Wait…that isn’t Saturn.” Max’s eyes widened. “W-Who are you!?”

The thing speaking through Saturn gave a disdainful scoff at the bear’s question. “_My true name is beyond the language of your kind…but if you are _that_ curious, I suppose that you can call me the one behind Saturn. All of her actions were _my_ doing…my children served her first, but _me_ foremost. To put it simply…I am…_”

“…The **Queen,**” Hanna finished. “The progenitor wasp burrowed in Saturn’s brain has finally taken the spotlight from her host.”

“_Precisely, my little spirit…_” the Queen giggled. “_She has been a fine vessel, even if her obsession with this…‘Tsuneo’ was beyond my control. However, I was able to work him into my own plans…and now, we have reached the final stage. When Tsuneo arrives, I shall grant him the highest honor: becoming the perfect hive for my brood!_” 

“Sweet fucking pudding pops… This crazy bitch wants to turn Tsuneo into _another_ Saturn?!” Eli shuddered at the thought.

“No……I think it’d be _worse_,” Gabe said nervously. “Given what I know of the NeverDead, his natural regenerative factors prevent bodily degradation, so the wasps could theoretically feed on him _forever._ To say nothing of whether or not they could eventually learn to access his powers…”

“Holy mother of _fuck_,” Tavo breathed. “And if they figure out that we’ve got _other_ immortals in our group-” He yelped as Dante’s foot gave him a none-too-gentle kick in the rump.

“Shut _up,_ short stuff!” The raccoon-dog snapped with none of his usual bravado. “I’d rather _not_ become an all-your-entire-swarm-can-eat wasp buffet, thanks!”

“_You are worth nothing more to me._” The Queen’s hiss was mirrored by the renewed buzzing of her swarm. “_Once I destroy you all, Tsuneo will be mine. And then…we shall lay claim to the Nexus itself._”

“Like _hell_ you will!” Wielding her rocket launcher like a battering ram, Irene punched a hole in Becky’s ice with the barrel before firing an icy rocket at the much closer target. However, a large group of wasps immediately flew into the rocket’s path, blocking enough of the blast for the ones carrying Saturn’s body to retreat to the center of the room.

“_Come, my brood!_” the Queen cackled. “_Let us **unite** and destroy these interlopers together!_”

At that order, the wasps all converged on Saturn, quickly obscuring it in a cloud of countless bodies. Even more wasps poured in from outside to join the growing mass; Becky watched in abject horror, but JoJo seemed oddly indifferent. The Society could only look on as the mass began to shift, sprouting limbs, stingers, and a grisly head as its expanding body shattered the walls and ceiling…

When the transformation was complete, the Society found themselves facing an insectile aberration larger than the entire building. It resembled a massive, monstrous parody of a wasp, its flesh formed from untold numbers of wasps working in terrible, perfect unison.

“**_AAAAAAAIIIIYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!_**” Becky’s scream was a few octaves shy of ultrasonic. “It’s all of my nightmares made real, stuffed into a blender of terror and-glued-together-with-pure-unrelenting-**hate!!!**” It took all of her willpower not to immediately dive into Scafe’s arms.

“Ohh, fignuts.” Brian shuddered as the completed mutant let out a mighty shriek, shaking the already unstable foundation beneath them. “I dunno what’s gonna kill us first; this thing, or the building…”

**-THE SOCIETY WILL RETURN-**


	4. Breaking the HIve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let the battle between the Queen and the Society begin.

## Tales of the Society - The Azure Age

### Chapter 8.4: Breaking the Hive

_ **Last time on Tales of the Society...** _

_Despite being separated from some of their number, the Crimson Society engaged Saturn at the very top of the wasp-infested 109 building. Despite their best efforts, the Hive-Brid’s swarm and Polyps seemed to have them on the ropes; fortunately, the rest of their members (save Tsuneo) arrived in the nick of time._

_Meanwhile, Tsuneo found himself herded to the very heart of the Neo-Tokyo Hive, where Saturn had set a trap for him. She revealed her belief that Tsuneo’s concern for his friends was “blocking” his desire for her; thus, she planned to turn them into mindless husks in order to “clear” the NeverDead’s mind and awaken his love for her. Of course, this only succeeded in **pissing him right off** \- with the increasing levels of chaos boosting his power, he broke out of the trap and began cutting a bloody swathe through the wasps and growths outside the main hive, intent on exacting grisly vengeance on the one threatening his friends._

__Still_ failing to get the hint, Saturn fought harder than ever, summoning all of her wasps to both counter the Society’s increased numbers and get them out of Tsuneo’s warpath. Fed up with the Hive-Brid’s proclamations of love, Irene denounced her as nothing but an obsessed fool chasing an impossible dream; although this didn’t shatter Saturn’s conviction, it _did_ prove the final straw for the true source of her powers; the Wasp Queen in her brain. Forcibly hijacking control of Saturn’s body, the insidious insect announced her intentions to turn Tsuneo into her new, eternal hive once she slaughtered his friends; a goal she just might be able to achieve now that she’s fused with every last one of her wasps. Faced with a titanic conglomerate of insectile horror, can the Society prevail before the whole hive collapses under them?_

_One thing’s for sure; the odds are _not_ looking good._

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

“Uh…guys? I think I found that ambush I was talking about earlier!” Juliet struggled to maintain her footing as the center of the room began to collapse into the building. Becky dispelled her ice globe as everyone scrambled to the edge of the amphitheatre, careful of the now wall-less ledges at their back.

“Oh, this isn’t good,” Gabe moaned. “We can’t fight her up here; there’s barely any room for us to _move,_ much less dodge!”

“Then I got an idea; we use the rest of the 109’s upper floors!” Eli demonstrated by jumping into the hole at a narrow angle, deftly landing on a ledge below. “We got wall cover down here, and if we got range, we can take her on!”

“Good idea, Eli!” Max called. “I’ll focus on making sure we’ll have floors to stand on!” He jumped down next, jutting out the concrete a bit more wherever he could to maximize footspace for the others as they came down one by one. 

“And us flyers can take her on, even up close!” Scafe proclaimed, brandishing his Thunder Chains for emphasis. “Brian, it’s up to you to give the rest of the Society something for fighting at a distance!”

“Roger that! Max, gimme a cover space so I can work in peace here!” When the masked bear created a small stoop, Brian ducked behind it to begin his work. “Anyone who has a way to hit that mega-bug, keep it busy while I work on arming the rest of us!”

The spider-bunny’s orders were met with various cries of assent as the ranged and/or flight-capable Society members moved to engage the monstrous wasp conglomerate. Even as their walls were assailed by acidic stingers, everyone who could fire back did so around their corners. Irene focused on flitting about to heal the ones that got nicked by those stingers, and the other flyers took their strikes where they could; alas, they only seemed to be making the Queen angry.

“_Impudent little butterfly!_” Recognizing Irene’s value as a medic, the Queen focused her volleys on her. Fortunately, Irene’s quick portal work kept her out of the stinger rains very effectively; unfortunately, this made healing her friends much more difficult, especially since it meant bringing a hail of lethal projectiles down on their heads.

“Grrh… Sorry boys…I can’t linger…very long…anywhere…without…getting hit…myself…oh, for the love of…WILL YOU _GIVE IT A REST,_ BITCH!?” Irene’s rant came in bursts as her portal-assisted flight kept her mere seconds ahead of the Queen’s stinger barrages. Meanwhile, more fire was coming from the building’s windows as Brian churned out makeshift weaponry for his range-challenged friends; sub-zero plasma cannons, ice-chunk machineguns, and even a snowball launcher for B.Nana. Despite the barrage, the monster seemed largely unaffected; the frozen wasps falling from its body looked more like a light snowfall than the expected avalanche of tiny corpses.

“Is it just me, or has this abomination become a _lot_ more resistant to its only weakness?!” Matt asked, catching another flung claw covered with ice.

“That’s because there’s way, WAY more of it to hit!” Eli called back, launching intermittent blasts from his ice cannon. “Brian, no pressure, but we need something BIGGER!!”

“FINE! I’ll _give_ you bigger!! Sit tight!” The spider-bunny ducked back under his cover, focusing intently on his next project. Meanwhile, the flyers were having similar difficulties against their foe; massive though it was, its compressed wasps had a nasty tendency to shift away from their blows, reducing the damage or even evading it entirely.

“I didn’t come into this expecting a fair fight…but GODDAMN, this is _unfair!_” Scafe snarled in frustration as his latest chain attack only grazed a few dozen wasps off the edge of the Queen’s head. “Tim, can’t you freeze bits of it in time or something?!”

“You think I haven’t _tried,_ sir?” Despite his words, the pegasus-man showed no frustration, only minor annoyance. “This fusion seems to have only augmented the wasps’ reflexes; I can’t seem to land a hit on very many at a _time,_ no matter what angle I approach from…”

“Yes…this truly is the Queen’s ultimate trump card,” Hanna mused, turning intangible to avoid a few jets of acid fired his way. “So many bodies, united in purpose and mind…even if I _could_ discern the Queen amid all these other souls, I’d never reach her before she moved elsewhere. Skimming will do no good; we need to hit the entire body at once to put this monster down!”

“Fear not, my ghostly friend; I do believe Brian’s working on just such a plan.” Tim glanced down below, where something very large was taking shape through Brian’s pencil. “We should endeavor to keep Her Majesty’s attention on us to give him the _time_ he needs to finish.”

“Already on it!” Scafe adjusted his flight path to soar around the Queen, raking her with the chain in one hand as he grabbed his communicator with the other. “Everybody, move _away_ from Brian - we need to keep the Queen off his ass!”

With cries of “Roger that!” and the like, the Society moved to the opposite side of the Queen, keeping up their assault all the while. Eli eased up on his cannon fire slightly in order to thumb his ice-imbued staff, ready to cover Brian if he came under attack; likewise, Irene did her best to keep an eye on the spider-bunny in between avoiding the brunt of the Queen’s wrath and sneaking in a quick heal when she could manage it.

“_Your persistence begins to annoy me…_” the monstrous wasp growled. “_All Polyps, focus on the building; BRING IT DOWN!_” Her command brought looks of shock and terror to the Society members’ faces.

“BUGGER ALL! BECKY, JOJO; FRONTLINE, **NOW!!!**” Max called out to the cryomancer and the oddly-quiet canine as they ran to the front of the firing line. JoJo spread another curtain of black energy across the air before their footholds for a brief reprieve, Becky ran a huge blanket of ice down the walls to try and shield them, and Max tried to repair the damaged masonry with his earthen abilities.

“I hope that this wasn’t your only plan...” JoJo called, sounding more annoyed than stressed. “I’m running out of power for my shadowmancy…and you do _not_ want to see my backup…”

“We won’t need it!” Brian called out from the controls of a truly colossal freeze ray. “Hey Irene, can I borrow a portal for a sec? Aim the opening for that giant monstrosity!” His orders reached her as she exited a portal in front of his cannon, allowing him to see the amalgamated insect through it. A moment’s charge later, the bright blue beam punched through the portal and blasted an enormous icy hole in the gestalt wasp, causing a collective cry of agony to erupt from the swarm.

“Ha ha ha! Direct hit!” Dante pumped his fist victoriously from behind his ice-fuelled gatling turret. “How’s the taste of absolute zero, you oversized living syringe?!”

“I see something in there; a bigger one, kinda purple and fleshy!” Irene called out, squinting as much as she dared. “Think that’s the Queen, Brian?”

“Most likely, but my freeze ray’s out of juice! I dunno if I can charge it up in time to…” The hybrid Councilman trailed off when he saw Irene loading her last ice rocket. “Ohhh…” His face broke into a wicked smile as he realized what she was planning. “Go for it!!!”

“With pleasure!” Irene dove through the portal as fast as her wings could take her, aiming her trusty rocket launcher at the slightly off-colored spot amid the swarm. In her focus, however, she didn’t notice a cluster of wasps pouring off the monster’s head until they had dived right into the line of fire.

“Oh gods, _n-_” Irene felt as if Tim had hit her with his time-slowing beam from the speed at which the next instant passed. First she saw the wasps flying into the barrel of her rocket launcher; then she heard her own gasp of terrified realization as she understood their intent; then she felt herself pull the trigger just a heartbeat before she could stop herself…

### BOOM!

The Society didn’t even have time to react as the rocket detonated in-chamber, nowhere near close enough to harm the Queen. Amid a shower of ice, wasps, and metal shards, they saw Irene plummet from the ivory cloud, her wings frozen solid and the rest of her in only slightly better shape.

“Shit! IRENE!!!” Brian screamed from the window as everyone else watched in abject horror. Tim went into a headlong dive, using his watch to accelerate himself to the very limit of his abilities, but it was clear that his efforts would be futile. Irene was falling too fast with the ice weighing her down; even if Tim caught her before she hit the street, the inertia would probably snap her in two.

“_Come now, Society…did you really think I would vacate the host body and leave myself vulnerable among my kin?_” The Queen laughed maliciously as she compressed her form to compensate for the lost mass. “_You made a fine attempt…but it seems to have cost you that annoying butterfly~ Now I can annihilate you all, piece by wretched piece!!_” 

The wasp’s taunting threat was lost on the Society; all of their attention was fixed on Irene, now just a tiny white dot plummeting towards the ground. Suddenly, something erupted from the building several floors down; a red streak that leapt across the street, intercepted Irene’s crash course and landed in a building on the opposite side.

“…Holy shit, was that-” Scafe’s question was both answered and cut off by a noise that dwarfed even the buzzing of Saturn’s swarm in both volume and promise of dreadful tidings.

“**RRRAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUGH!!!!!**” The anguished cry was followed by a series of crashes as the red streak jumped out of the top of the building. From this angle, the more eagle-eyed members could recognize him, and they both smiled and flinched at the sight.

“About time you caught up, Tsuneo…?” Brian’s cheerful greeting trailed off as he got a better look at the revenant standing at the edge of the opposite building. His entire body was surging with Ether - his veins glowed brightly enough to make his skin appear more red than green - and the lenses of his mask seemed ready to burst into flames from the sheer intensity. Despite his obscured face and the distance between them, everyone could _sense_ his anger; even Brian’s blood ran cold at the sight. He’d never seen his friend _this_ enraged in all the time he’d known him; this level of fury transcended normal emotion to become a force of nature all its own.

In that moment, the Society knew that the outcome of their fight had been decided.

“**You atrocious insect!**” Tsuneo’s voice shook the emptied street as he jumped off the edge of the building. As he reached the apex of his jump, something seemed to explode under his feet: a burst of Ether that propelled him toward his target, surrounded by a cloud of intense red vapor. He cut through thousands of wasps with his jump alone before landing on the 109’s window ledges, mindful to withdraw his Ether before he harmed his allies or their precarious footing. The Queen immediately launched a barrage of acidic needles at the new threat, but this only seemed to bolster Tsuneo’s wrath as he used another supercharged jump to launch himself to the top of the building. 

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph…” Juliet held back a shudder as she processed her superior’s near-feral actions. “Something’s got him madder than Brian after I stole his Grape Soda-” She paused to allow Brian’s indignant shout of “THAT WAS _YOU!?_” before ignoring him and finishing her thought. “-but this means he’s a very potent and deadly distraction. So, Brian…if you combine all our ice weapons, can we make something big enough to blow up that wasp monstrosity?”

The Sergeant grunted for a moment as the idea bounced around in his head. “Yeah…I could probably do that. Scafe, you’d need to bring this mother to bear once I splice these weapons together, got it?”

“10-4,” the dragon replied before turning to Becky. “Yo, Bex. You still got any juice to help topple this freak?”

“S-sure, plenty!” Despite her continued fright, Becky nodded confidently. “Kinda been…sparing…with it, since the bugs freaked me out too much and I didn’t wanna waste any of it.”

Scafe nodded understandingly as Brian continued issuing orders. “Tim and Hanna, keep up with Tsuneo; give him airlifting so he can stay in the fight!” With a collective “Break!” he set to work combining the weapons he just finished making for his allies - erasing some bits, redrawing others, adding in some other places - while Becky and Scafe stood at the ready for their parts in the plan. 

Meanwhile, Tsuneo continued leaping between the two buildings, tearing through the giant wasp monster as much as he could. When he got too low, Tim swooped in to grab at the revenant’s arm and swing him back up to the mutant from below; when he jumped too far, Hanna repelled his momentum with a burst of spectral energy. Essentially, the street had become a giant vertical pinball table, with Tsuneo as the ball and the Queen caught in the middle!

“How many more bugs do I have to shred before I can **end you,** Saturn!?” Tsuneo called out, his rage starting to level back out as he examined the situation mid-flight. The conglomerate monster had been greatly diminished by his assault, but the Queen was adapting quickly; she had forgone the wasp form in favor of a sinuous mass to better evade future attacks, still bombarding the street with acid, stingers, and even bits of her own biomass. Although Tim and Hanna deftly evaded the attacks, it was becoming increasingly difficult for them to do so while aiming Tsuneo at the remains of the swarm.

“I could use some backup here!” he yelled into his communicator. “I can’t hit Saturn if she keeps moving every time I make a leap at her through her bugs; to say nothing of what’ll happen to Tim and Hanna if they hang around much longer. We need to pin her down long enough to go for the kill!”

“We got you, Tsuneo!” Brian gave a thumbs-up, as Scafe hefted the frankensteined weapon into the sky, soaring in closer as it charged up in his hands. Recognizing his cue, Tsuneo used another blast of Ether to propel himself above and behind Scafe just as he fired the huge freezegun. The shotgun-like flurry of supercooled plasma, ice, cryogenic lasers and liquid nitrogen coated the monster’s body like powdered sugar, frosting and sprinkles on a cupcake. 

“_GAAAAAAH!!!_” The Queen shrieked in frustrated agony as she pulled away what she could salvage of her swarm, intent on making a break for the coast. However, Becky was ready for her; a barrage of icy crystals hit the gestalt from its other side, rapidly freezing the rest of its body.

“Nice assist, Becky; **do it, Scafe!!!**” Tsuneo cried. Recognizing his cue, Scafe lashed a regular chain at his undead friend; once Tsuneo had a solid grip, Scafe whipped him towards the giant ball of ice at blistering speeds, allowing him to punch clean through it. The resulting burst of Ether shredded nearly everything trapped inside the ice…save for the humanoid body that Tsuneo tackled out amid a rain of icy powder and bug chunks. As they smashed into the opposite building to land beside Irene, he took care to shield his captive from the worst of the fall - he wanted to ensure that she was conscious for what came next.

“Nnngh…” Saturn groaned as her eye flickered back to life in its socket; despite her grievous injuries from the blast, it seemed that the Queen had allowed her to regain control of their body. She slowly sat up and took in the scene before her; a mostly-frozen Irene by her side and an impassive Tsuneo slowly advancing on her. “Guh…T…Tsu-Tsu…? You…you s-saved me…?”

“Yup.” The masked zombie replied stoically enough, but his hands balled into fists as he saw the gleam of hopeful triumph in Saturn’s eye.

“Ngh…see…I knew…y-you ca- GRKH…! ” The Hive-Brid had barely stood up before a strong right hook sent her reeling back off her feet. “Tsu-Tsu, wait!”

“Wait? You want _me,_ of all people, to wait…when you threatened to take away everything I cared about…? You think you _deserve_ a chance to explain yourself?” Despite his contemptuous words, Tsuneo seemed content to watch Saturn scrambling to her feet, trying to call out some of her wasps…only to find that there were none left, save for the Queen.

“Ts-Tsuneo, please…I know this all looks bad, bu- GAH!” Saturn didn’t even see Tsuneo move until another brutal right hook sent her staggering away again.

“But _what?_” The revenant’s voice was sharp enough to cut diamonds. “You wanted to make me see what you _wanted_ me to see? To see you as the most important person in my life, is that it?” He cracked his knuckles as his voice dropped dangerously low. “The only reason I let Scafe tell you how I felt was because I didn’t want to get personally involved in your expulsion. I thought that it would’ve let you down gently…clearly, I underestimated the depth of your delusions.”

“Oh…no…not again…” Saturn’s gaze became pitying as she struggled to remain standing. “E-every time…y-you just let your friends…dictate what you do… Wh-Why do you follow their rules- NGH!” This time, a straight punch knocked her to the floor with a visible crack in her jaw.

“_OUR_ rules, Saturn,” Tsuneo corrected firmly. “We _all_ worked together to think of what we wanted to see in our members. We _all_ agreed you didn’t fit in with us; not just them, _I_ agreed too!” He put a boot to her chest, glowering down at her as she coughed up a bit of sickly brown blood. “When you told me your history, I _did_ pity you - no one deserves that, especially from their own parents - but it _didn’t_ justify the suffering you brought to _everyone else._ It _certainly_ didn’t make me empathize with you, or make me want to understand you; your actions told me everything I needed to know.”

“Wh-wha…” Saturn stared up at Tsuneo blearily before he shifted his weight on her chest, forcing her to look to the side.

“You want a good contrast? Take a look at _her._” Tsuneo motioned to the half-frosted Irene as she finally began to stir. “_She_ was kind enough to help me reconnect with the friends I have now, brave enough to face what she’d done to them - indirectly as it was - and caring enough to risk her neck for my own sake…and _never_ for her own selfish reasons.” He allowed himself a smile behind his mask before taking it off and stooping down to look Saturn in the eye. 

“And you know what? …I **love** her for that.” His smile twisted into a sneer as Saturn immediately snapped to attention. “She’s proven herself in the weeks we’ve worked together - in the _week_ she spent as a Society member - that she always had my interests…the _group’s_ interests…at the front of her mind. She’s _miles_ better than you’ve ever been to me.”

“Tsu…Ts-Tsunie…p-p-please…don’t d-do this to me…_please…_” Saturn sounded about ready to cry as Tsuneo’s Reaper Blade manifested in his hand, his sneer replaced by a look of absolute disgust.

“_What did I **say** about calling me ‘Tsunie,’ Saturn?_” His stern gaze and the renewed pressure on the Hive-Brid’s chest demanded an answer from her. It took her a moment of coughing and choking - whether from injury, fear, or despair, Tsuneo would never know - but she finally responded in a small, broken whisper. 

“…That’s…what…_she_…called you…”

Tsuneo gave a slow, silent nod before his blade came down beside Saturn’s throat, the invisible scythe on its back cleaving clean through her neck. A faint, desperate buzzing could be heard amid Saturn’s death rattle, but Tsuneo ignored it as he left the blade in the concrete and picked up the decapitated skull.

“Your first and _last_ mistake, **you crazy _bitch._**” His eyes blazed red as he crushed the skull between his hands, taking the Queen with it; in the same instant, his foot stomped down on the corpse’s chest with enough force to send both arms rocketing off of the body. The members who flew over to see it were totally flabbergasted by the utterly merciless sight, but Tsuneo ignored their shock as he wiped off his hands, dispelled his sword, and carefully hefted Irene onto his shoulders.

“…Brian…it’s done.” Still full of adrenaline and simmering rage towards the late Saturn, Tsuneo failed to realize that he had left his communicator on ever since his previous call for assistance; as such, the whole Society had heard every word of his final confrontation with Saturn…even the confession. “But…you might want to get out of there. Now that Saturn’s dead, I’m not sure how much longer that building is gonna hold up under your feet…especially since I cut away a lot of the flesh holding it together on my way here.”

“You did _what!?_” The words had barely escaped Brian’s mouth when the building began to shake underfoot. “Oh fignuts…we need to get off of this thing, _pronto!_”

“_How,_ exactly?” Tavo demanded. “Last I checked, our ‘get-outta-crumbling-skyscraper-free card’ has a bad case of freezing with a side of shrapnel and an extra-large concussion!”

“Irene’s not the _only_ one who can do that…” JoJo said, staring intently at the street below. “Allow me to demonstrate another of my powers…the _Abyssal Rift..._” As the floor around them started to give way, he opened a dark rift before him, large enough to walk into. “By all means, stay…if you wish to take the fall yourselves…”

Without waiting for a reply, the wolf stepped through the rift; deciding not to take their chances, the rest of the Society quickly followed. The rift had barely sealed itself when the floor gave out completely, heralding a much greater collapse as the last vestiges of Saturn’s hive dissolved from the ruined 109. The flying members and Tsuneo all reconvened on the street where they saw the other end of JoJo’s rift open up.

“Well, that _finally_ closes the book for another member of the Initiative.” Hanna smirked as he erected a dome of spirits around himself, his friends, and the Abyssal Rift, protecting them from the dust of the collapsing building. This allowed the other Society members to emerge from the rift with a chorus of gasps; clearly, the trip had been anything but pleasant.

“Oooh…is it just me…or did everybody…become…_triplets_…?” B.Nana tried to stand up, but only succeeded in falling on her backside as her world spun around her.

“Yeah…JoJo, do me a favor, and _never_ let me ask you to do that again.” Brian shuddered a bit as he tried to reorient himself. “I mean, ya saved us, but…”

“I already understand…sir.” JoJo heaved a sigh as he leveled his cold gaze at the rest of the group. His demeanour continued to confuse them, but Eli finally remembered something as he scrutinized his friend.

“Oh shit; I forgot you could do that.” The chinchilla chuckled nervously before turning to the others. “Right, uh…guys? I…_kinda_ forgot to mention something important before now: JoJo ain’t just one man. The guy I introduced to y’all earlier goes by **Grey**; right now, this is **Kuro** in control. …For the record, they _both_ respond to the name “JoJo,” so that’s why I introduced him as that.”

Seeing looks of bewilderment on most of the faces around him, “Kuro” elaborated. “Long before we came to the Nexus, a young blacksmith opened the gate to a forbidden realm…a realm that I called home… When he proved himself worthy of my favor, I offered him the power to lead his clan in exchange for freedom; thus, we fused…” He pulled aside the left half of his vest, revealing a black rune emblazoned over his heart. “Our bodies are one, but our souls only partially so…I normally let the other side control our form, but we can switch roughly once a day… He allowed me to take over after it became clear that his fear would hamper your efforts…”

“That’s interesting.” Max noted, nodding in understanding. “Still, I hope you’ll enjoy working with us as well, Kuro…”

The wolf-man nodded curtly as everyone else tried to wrap their brains around this new revelation. Once they had regained their bearings, they turned their attention to their wounded member. The shrapnel wounds Irene had suffered from her rocket’s backfire had healed up, but she was still barely conscious, a thick layer of frost covered her body, and her wings were still fully frozen. Tsuneo carefully set the pyromancer down on the concrete before stepping back to let the other members try their hands at helping her.

“You were so instrumental to this fight, Irene…now it’s _our_ turn to help _you._” Brian started sketching something as Scafe laid his Flame Chains atop the woman’s wings, trying to thaw them out along with her body. With her faculties slowly trickling back to her, Irene’s eyes began drifting from side to side, deliriously searching the sky above her as she forced words from her frosted lips.

“T..su.n..eo…” The half-conscious murmur brought the revenant back to her side. “Was…was I…w-was I hear..ing…things…?” Her bleary gaze settled on her savior as he stooped to catch her dazed words. “Wh…what you sa.id…did you… Di..d you… _really_…mean it…?” 

Tsuneo glanced at the rest of his friends to see all their eyes on him; even Brian had paused in his sketching out of curiosity. After a moment, he managed a smile as he looked back at Irene and gently dusted some of the ice out of her hair.

“_Every word of it,_” he whispered.

Irene’s eyes widened for a moment before heart-shaped markings slowly formed on her still-frozen wings. “W…w-well. Well, um…erm…ummm…yeah. That’s…that’s good. I’ve been…feeling the same…for a little while…” Her face flushed as her internal heat surged, evaporating much of the lingering frost and melting most of the rest across her body. Tsuneo couldn’t help but hold his smile as he donned his mask once more, answering Irene’s admission as he offered his hand.

“Good… C’mon, can ya stand now?” It wasn’t long before a shaky hand lighted in his own, allowing Tsuneo to slowly help Irene to her feet. Her legs quivered terribly - for more than a few reasons - and her iced wings could barely manage a twitch, but she quickly solved the latter problem with a moment’s concentration. To the Society’s surprise, the wings vanished, leaving the ice to fall onto the pavement…along with a small silver pendant styled to resemble a butterfly.

“…Better?” Tsuneo asked as Tavo gingerly levitated the pendant back to Irene’s free hand.

“Much,” she replied, turning her attention from the zombie just long enough to focus on her trinket. In a flash of silver light, it vanished and her wings reappeared on her back, good as new. “Of course, that stone helps a lot, but…even it wouldn’t have fixed me from _that._ So…thanks for the save~”

The other Society members couldn’t help but smile in turn, some willing themselves not to “d’aww” or otherwise ruin the moment; unfortunately, Kuro promptly did it for them.

“I _do_ hate to be the cloud to your silver lining…but I think we’ve wasted enough time here…” Despite his matter-of-fact tone, even the dark wolf couldn’t hide a small grin at the sight before him. “Don’t forget that this pest was but a distraction from our _true_ prey…”

“Right…Purgatory.” Brian nodded to himself as he tossed the unfinished doodle away; nearby, Hanna dispelled his barrier as the dust settled at last. “We need to call up Cipher now that we’re _finally_ ready to deal with her… Back to the _Ruby Revenant_, Society! Scafe, patch us through to the cat once we get there.”

With a collective cheer, everyone made their way back to their airship, ready to continue their assault against the Azure Initiative.

**-THE SOCIETY WILL RETURN-**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's something that could _only_ happen to Irene. But hey, it leads to one of the most badass declaration of love.


	5. Darker Side of the Light

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With the Queen and Saturn dead, the Society prepares to take on the Cathedral and Purgatory, except...

## Tales of the Society - The Azure Age

### Chapter 8 Epilogue: Darker Side of the Light

_ **Last time on Tales of the Society...** _

_When Saturn’s obsession proved too much of a hindrance, the Wasp Queen in her brain took full control of her body, uniting the swarm to create a colossal monstrosity around her host. With the 109 on the brink of collapse, the Society was forced to fight from the very edges of the ruined building until Brian delivered a seemingly-crippling blow on the wasp monster. Seeing what she thought was the Queen, Irene went in for the kill…only for a group of wasps to force a backfire in her rocket launcher. Unconscious, frozen, and riddled with shrapnel, she was in for a very nasty impact with the ground…_

_…until Tsuneo finally joined the battle, full to bursting with Ether and rage. After saving Irene in the nick of time, he launched a ferocious assault on the Queen’s monstrous amalgamation; with the assistance of Brian, Becky, and Scafe, he delivered the finishing blow, exterminating all of the wasps save for their Queen and their living hive. Back in control of herself, Saturn begged for understanding from the target of her affections, but Tsuneo had no mercy for the psychotic Hive-Brid, breaking her physically and emotionally before finally putting her and her “tenant” out of their misery._

_After narrowly escaping the collapse of Saturn’s former hive, the Society regrouped to tend to Irene, the subject of a romantic revelation on Tsuneo’s part. Unbeknownst to the revenant, the whole Society had heard his confession; including Irene, who admitted her feelings for him in turn. Alas, our heroes have no time to celebrate; there’s still Purgatory’s Cathedral to worry about, and the loss of Saturn has not done wonders for Weiss’s mood…_

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at the Initiative HQ, Weiss was breaking everything in his office out of frustration at the latest “setback” to his plans. Nothing was safe; his desk, his chair, the posters on the wall, even his beloved mini-fridge became casualties of his most violent outburst yet.

“IDIOTS!!! _IDIOTS!!!!_ ALL OF YOU ARE **FUCKING _IDIOTS!!!!!!!!!_**” he screamed to empty air. “WHY CAN’T PEOPLE FOLLOW THE _SIMPLEST_ FUCKING INSTRUCTIONS?!?!?!?!”

Weiss’s psychotic rant could be heard all the way down in the living room, where Amethyst, Quantum, and 1:30 had gathered. The latter two stared up in silence (highly unusual for 1:30, business as usual for Quantum), but the former looked extremely concerned.

“Oh, Weiss…” The cyborg goat-girl suddenly whirled around and punched the nearest wall with a scream of her own. “_Dammit,_ Saturn! This wouldn’t be happening if you had just kept your head and stuck with the original plan… If this keeps up, Weiss will blow a blood vessel!”

“This is…most unfortunate,” Quantum sighed monotonously. “Our options diminish by the day…still, the Society’s tenacity is…admirable.”

“Admirable? _ADMIRABLE?!_” Amethyst rounded on her fellow cyborg with a look of furious disbelief. “We’ve just lost _another_ member, my boyfriend is flipping his shit, the Society has gotten strong enough to take on _a building-sized hive full of mutant wasps_…and the first thing you can think of is _admiration of the fucking **enemy?!**_ …Be honest, did they managed to bug up your logic circuits with their last beatdown on you?”

“Saturn was doomed…plain…and simple…” 1:30 scoffed quietly, sitting like a demonic statue as Weiss’s anger echoed from above. “She dared…to defy…the angel… Death is…a just punishment…”

“HEY! Whose side are you on, 1:30?!” Amethyst paused in her own rant when she realized what she had just asked. “Actually…_don’t_ answer that…just start thinking about how we’re gonna stop Weiss from flash-frying us all when he finally comes downstairs!”

Before either Quantum or 1:30 could comment, the remote began beeping; a sign that someone was trying to contact the Azure HQ. Amethyst stared at the blinking light for a long moment before taking a deep breath and picking up the device as if it were a ticking time bomb.

“Uhh…WEISSY!” She yelled at the top of her lungs to be heard over the destruction. “Incoming call from our resident agent of God’s will!” She sorely wanted to use stronger words to describe Purgatory, but decided against it after glancing at 1:30; as it was, she turned on the television and changed the channel to the base’s private communication frequency.

The cacophony overhead finally came to an end, only to be replaced by a loud *_pop_* as Weiss appeared in the living room in a small flash of electricity. He didn’t even look at the other three occupants of the room, staring directly at the television screen as a familiar armored visage appeared.

“Behold…it is done.” Purgatory began grandly. “The light to everlasting salvation. The pinnacle of the Initiative’s triumph. The harbinger of the Society’s ignoble-”

“Spare me the theatrics, Tania,” Weiss growled. “I’m having a _very_ shitty day.”

“Regarding our wasp-commanding comrade, no doubt.” Judging by her slow nod, Purgatory had been keeping up with the news from Neo-Tokyo. “A _truly_ tragic loss…but one that was not in vain. While the Society was struggling to liberate Neo-Tokyo, I was able to put the finishing touches on the instrument of their ultimate demise.”

Despite his _literally_ stormy mood, Weiss smiled. “So it’s ready?” he asked.

“It is ready, milord,” Purgatory replied. “It only awaits your command.”

“And are you _certain_ that this is the ‘be-all end-all’ for the Society?” Weiss pressed, not daring to hope after the _last_ several failures.

“Hmm hmm hmm…fear not, Weiss.” Purgatory’s grin was audible. “I understand the Society’s weaknesses; my plan will trump Marcell, Sylvie, and Quantum’s _combined._ They will soon know the name of the Lord…_for his **vengeance** is upon them!_”

Amethyst rolled her eyes at Purgatory’s usual fanatical rant, but Weiss seemed enraptured. “That’s _exactly_ what I wanted to hear,” he said. “If this ‘Cathedral’ can do even _half_ of what you say it can, even Nesmon will come crawling to our door, begging us to take him on!” The thought brought a savage grin to his face before he pointed dramatically at the screen. “Proceed at once, Tania! Show those Crimson Suckers _exactly_ what happens _when you fuck with the **best!**_”

“With _utmost_ pleasure, milord.” Tania’s visor shifted to regard 1:30. “Come to the Cathedral, my servant. The time has come to _earn_ your absolution.” Although she terminated the communication before the monster could answer, the dull glow in his eyes seemed to brighten as her words sunk in.

“Yesss…my master…” 1:30’s response trailed off into a hiss as he rose from his chair and slouched towards the basement, where a Warp Pad had been set up to link the base with Purgatory’s location. Once the deep drumbeat of his footsteps had faded to nothing, Weiss turned to Quantum.

“How’s my new Chimera coming along?” he asked. “On a scale of 10 to a trillion, how much better is it than the last?”

“Lord Weiss…the Crimson Chimera 2.0 is back to the planning stages; I have had to-” Quantum paused when a small bolt of lightning flew past his face, barely singing his fur.

“I’m sorry, did I hear that right? Did you say that it’s _less_ complete than the last time I asked for a status update~?” The air of concern in Weiss’s voice was laughably forced; a gossamer veil trying to conceal a burgeoning explosion.

“I had to abandon the previous template in light of the Neo-Tokyo incident.” The brief flick of an eye to regard the new burn on his face was Quantum’s only reaction to Weiss’s interruption. “The Society’s ability to overcome Saturn at the peak of her strength indicates another significant leap in their collective power; I suspect that they have added yet more members to their ranks. In light of this, I have returned to the planning phase to incorporate these new parameters into the Chimera’s template, thereby ensuring a 0% chance of another failed production model…as per your previous orders.” His voice became noticeably more robotic at that last phrase, as if he was merely repeating something from his databanks.

“Hmph…_another_ ‘miscalculation’ about the Crimshits’ maximum power level?” Weiss crossed his arms with a snort. “You’re a real _fuckup_, Quantum…but at least you’re a _dedicated_ fuckup. Well…with any luck, we won’t _need_ your stupid Chimera to take over the Nexus now, but I am _past_ the point of leaving anything to chance!” He uncrossed his arms to repeatedly snap a finger in Quantum’s face. “C’mon then - back to work! If you want a break, just gimme a holler; you’ll have all the time in the world while you’re trying to fix all the circuits I’ll fry!”

“I would not even consider seeking a reprieve, Lord Weiss…your orders are absolute.” Between his diction and his movements, Quantum could be mistaken for a complete robot as he raised his cybernetic arm and vanished in a flurry of code. Weiss scowled at the spot where the Zoroark had stood for a few more moments before turning his attention to the only other person left in the room.

“…Amethyst.” His expression was unreadable, but the goat-girl did her best not to flinch under his intense stare. “Come with me; I have some _stress_ to work out.”

“Y-y-yes, hon! O-of course you do!” Amethyst’s nod was just a hair short of frantic. “Y…you _do_ mean in your ‘stress room’, right…?”

“Yep.” Weiss’s laconic answer brought a spark of relief to Amethyst’s heart, although she wasn’t sure why. “And _you’re_ gonna be joining me.”

“O-of course, sweetie!” Amethyst’s voice steadied with her confidence as she jumped from her chair. “There’s nothing I like more than visualizing those Society punks in place of the conductors and lightning rods while you pump ’em full of-”

“Nonononono…” Weiss raised a hand to silence his girlfriend. “That isn’t what I had in mind; I meant that you’re gonna be _with_ me.”

As quickly as it had come, the flame of hope in Amethyst’s heart was extinguished. “W…w-_with_ you?” she parroted. “As in…_inside_ the stress room…while you vent? _On me?_”

“Hey, don’t be so pessimistic~!” The return of Weiss’s normal cocky demeanour was almost jarring. “I’ll aim for the gizmos, like always; all _you_ gotta do is dodge around the stray discharges! Easy enough for someone with a bod like yours, no~?” He scanned Amethyst’s barely-clad body as he spoke, but his gaze seemed less lecherous and more…_predatory._

“Uh…w-well…yeah, but…” Amethyst cast around desperately for something, _anything_ to get herself out of this. “Shouldn’t I, y’know, be prepping for our big fight with the Society? Helping Quantum with the Chimera, patrolling Purgatory’s Cathedral, making bombs or something~?”

“C’mon, Amy, where’s that spirit of yours? I know for a _fact_ that you’re _more_ than badass enough to dodge a couple of wayward lightning arcs!” The gleam behind Weiss’s shades was the only crack in his jovial facade as he flash-stepped beside Amethyst and clapped an encouraging hand on her shoulder. The sultry goat had barely caught her breath when she felt the hand shift to her neck, grabbing her choker like a vise to let a few threatening sparks dance on her fur. “And I’m _sure_ that you’re not gonna _disappoint_ me like all the others, **right~?**”

Distrusting her voice not to betray her abject terror, Amethyst silently nodded with as much enthusiasm as she could muster, prompting Weiss to release her collar and motion for her to head for the “stress room”. Although her body complied readily enough, it was on autopilot as her mind considered two burning questions: when Weiss had changed so drastically, and how had she missed it? He certainly had his violent moments before - a bit of “unnecessary roughness” during intimacy, a strike pulled too late during their “hardcore training” sessions, even a few manhandlings after the Society’s latest victory over their forces - but a few nasty bruises was the extent of the aftermath.

This time, he was putting her in actual life-threatening danger - _intensely unorthodox training, madness-induced overconfidence in my abilities, or a sadistic whim?_ \- and it was clear that he wasn’t even the slightest bit concerned about her willingness to go along with it.

At that moment, Amethyst realized the source of her earlier relief with terrible clarity. She was no longer scared _for_ Weiss…

…she was scared _of_ him.

**-THE SOCIETY WILL RETURN-**

**Author's Note:**

> I am LadyIrene #2020 on Discord and Insanity_Lady on Twitter.


End file.
